Barclays Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) Stock Price

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) had its price target cut by investment analysts at Barclays from $310.00 to $280.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Barclays‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 11.68% from the company’s previous close.

LECO has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 target price on Lincoln Electric in a report on Friday, February 13th. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $297.00 price target (up from $285.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.29.

Lincoln Electric Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of Lincoln Electric stock traded up $1.63 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $250.71. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 203,579 shares, compared to its average volume of 358,537. Lincoln Electric has a 1-year low of $161.11 and a 1-year high of $310.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.90, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $271.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $250.64.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.35% and a net margin of 12.30%.Lincoln Electric’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.57 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Lincoln Electric will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Lincoln Electric by 3.9% during the second quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $240,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. grew its position in Lincoln Electric by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 1,832 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $439,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,692 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $399,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Profund Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 1,264 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $298,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,752 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $363,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

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.