AQR Capital Management LLC Sells 6,599 Shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO)

AQR Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 11.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 48,857 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 6,599 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $9,159,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 29.5% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 508,686 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $95,363,000 after purchasing an additional 115,813 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 25.7% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $130,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Securities LLC bought a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter worth about $680,000. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 19.8% in the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 35,986 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,746,000 after acquiring an additional 5,951 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $267,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lincoln Electric

In related news, CEO Steven B. Hedlund sold 21,054 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $4,536,505.38. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,660 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,777,590.20. This trade represents a 27.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Shares of LECO opened at $180.47 on Wednesday. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $161.11 and a 12-month high of $238.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The company has a market cap of $10.07 billion, a PE ratio of 22.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.18. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $186.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $195.79.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.22 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $365.45 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $974.39 million. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 11.63% and a return on equity of 40.19%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on LECO. Barclays upped their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $178.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $179.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $242.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Lincoln Electric presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $216.17.

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.