Meeder Advisory Services Inc. Takes $223,000 Position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Meeder Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 6,299 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $223,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of LECO. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,177 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $293,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Hilltop Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 1,832 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $439,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 4,361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,045,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 9.4% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 606 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $151,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. increased its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 4,314 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,034,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln Electric

In other Lincoln Electric news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of Lincoln Electric stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,560,954.39. The trade was a 8.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on LECO shares. Morgan Stanley raised Lincoln Electric from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $257.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday, August 10th. UBS Group started coverage on Lincoln Electric in a research report on Monday, August 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $340.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 target price on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Lincoln Electric from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $307.22.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

Shares of Lincoln Electric stock opened at $281.82 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.20. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $266.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $265.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $216.22 and a 1-year high of $310.00.

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

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.57%.

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.