Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) Trading 9.3% Higher Following Earnings Beat

Key Points

• Lincoln Electric's stock price surged 9.3% after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with an EPS of $2.60 exceeding analyst estimates by $0.29.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.75 per share, to be paid on October 15th, representing a 1.23% yield and a payout ratio of 36.99%.
• Recent analyst ratings have varied, with price targets ranging from $180 to $250, leading to an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $222.60.

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 9.3% on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $242.43 and last traded at $244.16. Approximately 422,184 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 22% from the average daily volume of 346,934 shares. The stock had previously closed at $223.33.

The industrial products company reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.29. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.44% and a net margin of 11.44%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.34 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. Lincoln Electric's payout ratio is 36.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on LECO shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $180.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $242.00 to $212.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $179.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lincoln Electric from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $222.60.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 12.5% in the 2nd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 11,049 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,291,000 after buying an additional 1,227 shares in the last quarter. LifeWealth Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 2nd quarter worth about $219,000. Tributary Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC now owns 4,443 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $921,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Ethic Inc. increased its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 4,950 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,036,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parcion Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 2nd quarter worth about $269,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.61% of the company's stock.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

The company's 50-day moving average price is $209.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $198.07. The company has a market cap of $13.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

About Lincoln Electric

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.

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