Tributary Capital Management LLC Increases Stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Tributary Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 63.9% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 7,284 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,841 shares during the quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $1,718,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Panagora Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 3.9% in the second quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $240,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,752 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $363,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership lifted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $125,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Claret Asset Management Corp lifted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Claret Asset Management Corp now owns 1,112 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $231,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 2,873 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $678,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lincoln Electric Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:LECO opened at $245.55 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.29, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.26. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $161.11 and a 12-month high of $252.00. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $237.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $234.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.05 billion. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.56% and a return on equity of 40.33%. Lincoln Electric’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.14 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. This is an increase from Lincoln Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio is 33.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LECO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Roth Capital set a $285.00 price target on Lincoln Electric and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered Lincoln Electric from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Zacks Research cut shares of Lincoln Electric from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $265.00 to $252.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $244.83.

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.