Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec Buys New Stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 739,692 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,148,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the second quarter valued at $29,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Lincoln Electric in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 4th quarter worth $46,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric during the second quarter worth $69,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 980.8% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 281 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the period. 79.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

NASDAQ LECO opened at $284.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.20. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $216.22 and a 1-year high of $310.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.20. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $267.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $266.10.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.23%. Lincoln Electric’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.60 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.13 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.57%.

Insider Activity at Lincoln Electric

In other news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total value of $232,214.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,560,954.39. This trade represents a 8.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LECO has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $320.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Lincoln Electric from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of 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 report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Lincoln Electric currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $307.22.

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.