Stifel Nicolaus Cuts Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) Price Target to $264.00

Key Points

• Stifel Nicolaus cut its price target on Lincoln Electric to $264 (from $300) and retained a "hold" rating, implying roughly a 4.4% upside from the stock's recent price.
• Analyst views are mixed—four Buy, four Hold and one Sell—with a MarketBeat consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $291.14.
• Shares recently traded at $252.93 (up $10.88); the company posted Q EPS of $2.65 (beating by $0.12) with revenue of $1.08B (slightly below estimates), a 5.5% YoY revenue increase, and a P/E around 27.1.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) had its price objective lowered by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $300.00 to $264.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "hold" rating on the industrial products company's stock. Stifel Nicolaus' price target would indicate a potential upside of 4.38% from the company's current price.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Barclays reduced their price target on Lincoln Electric from $310.00 to $280.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Lincoln Electric from $240.00 to $247.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen cut Lincoln Electric from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Lincoln Electric from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $291.14.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LECO traded up $10.88 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $252.93. The stock had a trading volume of 76,119 shares, compared to its average volume of 371,828. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.82. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $270.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $250.88. Lincoln Electric has a 12-month low of $162.84 and a 12-month high of $310.00. The stock has a market cap of $13.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.28.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.12. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.35% and a net margin of 12.30%.The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.57 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Lincoln Electric will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LECO. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 3,700.0% in the 3rd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 114 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 4th quarter worth about $46,000. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Lincoln Electric

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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