Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO Lowers Stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO cut its stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 20.0% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 9,803 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,452 shares during the quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO’s holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $2,442,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hilltop Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Lincoln Electric by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 1,832 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $439,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 1.2% in the 4th 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 buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. raised its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 4,314 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,034,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Versor Investments LP lifted its position in Lincoln Electric by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 1,563 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $375,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 823 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $197,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LECO. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Barclays increased their price target on Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Lincoln Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, May 17th. DA Davidson initiated coverage on Lincoln Electric in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $320.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Friday, May 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $299.00.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

LECO opened at $275.37 on Monday. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $199.13 and a 12-month high of $310.00. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $15.09 billion, a PE ratio of 28.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $262.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $261.06.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.42 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.38% and a return on equity of 39.33%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.16 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 10.82 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Lincoln Electric’s payout ratio is currently 32.61%.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln Electric

In other Lincoln Electric news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total value of $232,214.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,560,954.39. This represents a 8.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Lincoln Electric

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.