Keybank National Association OH Sells 40,832 Shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Keybank National Association OH lowered its position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 660,091 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 40,832 shares during the quarter. Keybank National Association OH’s holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $136,850,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 75.0% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,811 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $721,000 after purchasing an additional 1,633 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 1st quarter valued at about $261,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 20.1% during the 1st quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 21,841 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,131,000 after purchasing an additional 3,658 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 195.2% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 223,025 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,187,000 after purchasing an additional 147,483 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 54,709 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $10,349,000 after purchasing an additional 1,143 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:LECO opened at $234.51 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $161.11 and a 12 month high of $249.19. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $238.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $218.46. The company has a market cap of $12.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.35, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.20.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.28. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.27% and a return on equity of 39.79%. The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.34 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be given a $0.79 dividend. This is an increase from Lincoln Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.51%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Steven B. Hedlund sold 12,387 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.36, for a total value of $3,014,500.32. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 55,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,595,549.76. This represents a 18.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.23, for a total transaction of $233,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,177 shares in the company, valued at $2,140,351.71. This trade represents a 9.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 23,692 shares of company stock valued at $5,745,148. Company insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on LECO shares. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lincoln Electric from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, October 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.50.

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.