American International Group Inc. Lowers Holdings in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO)

American International Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 2.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 76,145 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,562 shares during the quarter. American International Group Inc. owned 0.13% of Lincoln Electric worth $19,450,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 194.4% in the first quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 106 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Lincoln Electric in the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 43.1% in the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 166 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of 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 decreased their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Two research 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $221.71.

Lincoln Electric Stock Down 4.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LECO traded down $9.84 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $197.41. 380,289 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 336,957. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.96, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 2.24 and a quick ratio of 1.49. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $164.00 and a 12-month high of $261.13. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $195.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $222.76.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $981.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.04 billion. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 13.23% and a return on equity of 43.81%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.13 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. Lincoln Electric’s payout ratio is 30.15%.

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.