Man Group plc Purchases Shares of 10,097 Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Man Group plc purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 10,097 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,681,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of LECO. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings 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 worth $293,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Hilltop Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 1,832 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $439,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 4,361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,045,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 9.4% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 606 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. lifted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 4,314 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,034,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on LECO. DA Davidson initiated coverage on Lincoln Electric in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $320.00 target price on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $257.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $307.22.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total transaction of $232,214.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.68% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LECO opened at $281.23 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.33 billion, a PE ratio of 28.09, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $216.22 and a 1-year high of $310.00. The business’s 50 day moving average is $267.50 and its 200-day moving average is $265.79.

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

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

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

About Lincoln Electric

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.