Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) Stock

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from $179.00 to $180.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "underweight" rating on the industrial products company's stock. Morgan Stanley's target price would indicate a potential downside of 3.16% from the stock's current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp decreased their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $178.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Lincoln Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $242.00 to $212.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $216.17.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

LECO stock traded down $1.34 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $185.87. The company had a trading volume of 287,739 shares, compared to its average volume of 331,062. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The business has a 50 day moving average of $185.37 and a 200 day moving average of $195.56. Lincoln Electric has a fifty-two week low of $161.11 and a fifty-two week high of $238.47.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.22 by ($0.06). Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 11.63% and a return on equity of 40.19%. The firm had revenue of $365.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $974.39 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.23 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Lincoln Electric will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln Electric

In other news, CEO Steven B. Hedlund sold 21,054 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total value of $4,536,505.38. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,660 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,777,590.20. The trade was a 27.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 255.1% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 174 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 54.1% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 299 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 4th quarter valued at about $68,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 37.5% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 389 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lincoln Electric Company Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells welding, cutting, and brazing products worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Americas Welding, International Welding, and The Harris Products Group. It offers brazing and soldering filler metals, arc welding equipment, plasma and oxyfuel cutting systems, wire feeding systems, fume control equipment, welding accessories, and specialty gas regulators, and education solutions, as well as a portfolio of automated solutions for joining, cutting, material handling, module assembly, and end of line testing, as well as involved in brazing and soldering alloys, and in the retail business in the United States.