Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) SVP Sells $193,556.00 in Stock

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) SVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.96, for a total transaction of $193,556.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,966,880.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Shares of LECO stock opened at $175.98 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 2.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $193.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $214.26. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $164.00 and a 52 week high of $261.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.01 billion, a PE ratio of 18.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.14.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 42.24%. The firm’s revenue was down 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.44 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 8.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio is 30.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on LECO shares. StockNews.com downgraded Lincoln Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Lincoln Electric from $209.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Loop Capital lowered their price target on Lincoln Electric from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 24th. KeyCorp cut their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $218.29.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 194.4% during the 1st quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 106 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 174.4% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 107 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in Lincoln Electric in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lincoln Electric Company 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.