32,047 Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO Shares Sold by Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lowered its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 67.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,271 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 32,047 shares during the quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS’s holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $4,040,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LECO. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric during the second quarter worth approximately $1,431,181,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 2nd quarter worth $52,700,000. Algebris UK Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the second quarter valued at about $44,811,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the second quarter valued at about $26,148,000. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the second quarter worth about $21,914,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $283.00 to $293.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. DA Davidson set a $340.00 price target on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $271.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $319.11.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LECO opened at $275.35 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $216.22 and a 52-week high of $310.00. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $267.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $266.48. The company has a market capitalization of $14.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.19.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The industrial products company reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 40.06% and a net margin of 12.40%. The firm’s revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.47 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 31st will be issued a $0.87 dividend. This is a boost from Lincoln Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 31st. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lincoln Electric

In other Lincoln Electric news, CEO Steven B. Hedlund sold 14,371 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.95, for a total transaction of $4,051,903.45. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 63,483 shares in the company, valued at $17,899,031.85. This represents a 18.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 1.68% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc is a manufacturer of welding, cutting and automation products. Its offerings include arc-welding equipment and consumables, plasma and oxyfuel cutting systems, robotic welding solutions and related automation technologies, as well as brazing and soldering products.

Founded in 1895 by John C. Lincoln, the company serves customers across a range of industries, including manufacturing, infrastructure, energy and transportation. Its products and services are sold in markets around the world through its international operations and distribution network.

Lincoln Electric is headquartered in the Cleveland, Ohio, area.