Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. Buys New Shares in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 4,169 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,107,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of LECO. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Lincoln Electric in the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in Lincoln Electric during the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Lincoln Electric during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 980.8% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 281 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LECO opened at $281.82 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $266.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $265.97. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $216.22 and a 12 month high of $310.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.20.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.12. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.23%. The firm had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.60 earnings per share. Lincoln Electric’s quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. Lincoln Electric’s payout ratio is presently 31.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lincoln Electric

In related news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total value of $232,214.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,560,954.39. This represents a 8.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.68% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LECO shares. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Lincoln Electric from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $257.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Barclays upped their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Lincoln Electric from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $307.22.

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.