Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Makes New $2.86 Million Investment in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 10,755 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,856,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of LECO. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Lincoln Electric by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,177 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 4,361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,045,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 9.4% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 606 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $151,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 4.6% during the first quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,241 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $318,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Versor Investments LP grew its stake in Lincoln Electric by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 1,563 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $375,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. DA Davidson initiated coverage on Lincoln Electric in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $320.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded Lincoln Electric from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $257.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Monday, August 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $340.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $307.22.

Lincoln Electric Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ LECO traded up $2.60 during trading on Monday, hitting $259.80. 124,872 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 387,812. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $268.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $263.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.16 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.21. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $216.22 and a 12-month high of $310.00.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.12. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.23%. The firm had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.60 earnings per share. Lincoln Electric’s revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.16 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Lincoln Electric’s payout ratio is currently 31.57%.

Lincoln Electric Company Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: LECO) is a Cleveland, Ohio-based manufacturer of welding, cutting and automation products. Founded in 1895 by John C. Lincoln, the company serves industrial, construction, energy, transportation and other end markets that use fabrication and joining technologies.

Its product portfolio includes arc-welding machines, welding consumables such as electrodes and wire, plasma and oxyfuel cutting equipment, robotic welding systems, and related automation solutions.