Mach 1 Financial Group LLC Makes New Investment in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Mach 1 Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,342 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $561,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LECO. M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 5,862.4% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,271,364 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $304,670,000 after purchasing an additional 1,250,041 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in 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 worth $123,691,000 after purchasing an additional 486,090 shares in the last quarter. Cartenna Capital LP raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 675.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cartenna Capital LP now owns 310,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $73,107,000 after acquiring an additional 270,000 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 31.8% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 919,926 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $216,946,000 after acquiring an additional 221,853 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 24.6% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 850,201 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $200,517,000 after acquiring an additional 167,773 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LECO opened at $260.08 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $257.94 and its 200 day moving average is $256.15. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $188.65 and a fifty-two week high of $310.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.25 billion, a PE ratio of 26.84, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.83.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.42 by $0.08. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.33% and a net margin of 12.38%.The company had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.16 EPS. Lincoln Electric’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 10.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Monday, May 4th. Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 price objective on Lincoln Electric in a report on Friday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $280.00 price objective (down from $350.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Weiss Ratings raised Lincoln Electric from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $296.00.

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.