Deutsche Bank AG Purchases Shares of 102,212 Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 102,212 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,613,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LECO. Diamant Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 24,685.8% in the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,839,568 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $956,360,000 after buying an additional 3,824,077 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $415,155,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Lincoln Electric during the fourth quarter worth approximately $146,135,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings 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 last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 2nd quarter valued at $108,330,000. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of the business’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 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on LECO shares. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 target price on Lincoln Electric in a report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley upgraded Lincoln Electric from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $257.00 to $283.00 in a report on Monday, August 10th. UBS Group began coverage on Lincoln Electric in a report on Monday, August 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $340.00 target price for the company. Barclays increased their target price on shares of 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 shares of 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 issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $307.22.

Lincoln Electric Trading Up 3.6%

NASDAQ LECO opened at $290.12 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $15.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.98, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.20. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $266.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $266.03. 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 52 week low of $216.22 and a 52 week high of $310.00.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last released 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 business had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.60 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis 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%.

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.