Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Raises Position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Key Points

• Westfield Capital Management increased its stake in Lincoln Electric by 19.4% in the fourth quarter, buying an additional 54,762 shares and bringing its total holding to 337,725 shares valued at about $80.9 million.
• Lincoln Electric recently beat quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $2.50 versus $2.42 expected and revenue of $1.12 billion versus $1.07 billion expected, with revenue up 11.7% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.79 per share payable on July 15, and analysts currently rate the stock a consensus “Hold” with an average price target of $296.

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) by 19.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 337,725 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 54,762 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP owned approximately 0.61% of Lincoln Electric worth $80,932,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Profund Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 1,264 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $298,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 4,361 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,045,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,821 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $427,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 1,563 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $375,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Modern Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,010 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,125,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LECO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 price objective on Lincoln Electric in a report on Friday, February 13th. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lincoln Electric from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, May 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $280.00 target price (down from $350.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $296.00.

Lincoln Electric Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ LECO opened at $263.84 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $14.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.23, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $194.88 and a 52-week high of $310.00. The business's 50 day moving average is $258.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $258.40.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.42 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.33% and a net margin of 12.38%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.16 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 10.81 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Lincoln Electric's payout ratio is presently 32.61%.

Lincoln Electric Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc NASDAQ: LECO is a global manufacturer and distributor of welding products, robotic welding systems, plasma and oxyfuel cutting equipment, and surface treatment systems. The company's portfolio encompasses welding consumables such as electrodes and wires, as well as power sources, torches, and automated welding cells. Lincoln Electric also offers software solutions and training services designed to optimize productivity and quality in fabrication and manufacturing operations.

Founded in 1895 by John C.

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