Trexquant Investment LP Buys Shares of 7,508 Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO)

Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 7,508 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,408,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,601,734 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,050,157,000 after acquiring an additional 18,805 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,735,527 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $325,359,000 after buying an additional 234,515 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter worth about $307,344,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,235,582 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $231,691,000 after purchasing an additional 31,033 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,163,119 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $218,050,000 after purchasing an additional 65,154 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.61% of the company's stock.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

NASDAQ LECO traded up $2.14 on Tuesday, reaching $182.09. 36,912 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 327,228. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The company has a market cap of $10.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.18. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $194.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $197.22. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $161.11 and a 12 month high of $243.04.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $2.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.54. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 11.63% and a return on equity of 40.19%. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $995.94 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Lincoln Electric's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays raised 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. KeyCorp lifted their price target on Lincoln Electric from $230.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $178.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $227.00.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln Electric

In other Lincoln Electric 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 transaction of $4,536,505.38. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 54,660 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,777,590.20. The trade was a 27.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Lincoln Electric 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.