Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO Shares Sold by WealthPlan Investment Management LLC

WealthPlan Investment Management LLC cut its position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 40.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,919 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 17,716 shares during the quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $6,211,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LECO. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 5,862.4% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,271,364 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $304,670,000 after purchasing an additional 1,250,041 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 439.8% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 596,617 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $123,691,000 after purchasing an additional 486,090 shares during the period. Cartenna Capital LP boosted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 675.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cartenna Capital LP now owns 310,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $73,107,000 after purchasing an additional 270,000 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 31.8% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 919,926 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $216,946,000 after purchasing an additional 221,853 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 24.6% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 850,201 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $200,517,000 after purchasing an additional 167,773 shares during the period. 79.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lincoln Electric Stock Down 2.0%

Lincoln Electric stock opened at $260.92 on Friday. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $188.65 and a twelve month high of $310.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $258.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $255.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.93, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.24.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.42 by $0.08. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.33% and a net margin of 12.38%.The company had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.16 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 10.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on LECO shares. KeyCorp upped their target price on Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $280.00 target price (down from $350.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $297.00 target price (up from $285.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 target price on Lincoln Electric in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Lincoln Electric from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $296.00.

Lincoln Electric Company 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.