Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at DA Davidson

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) was upgraded by equities researchers at DA Davidson to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Wall Street Zen cut Lincoln Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Lincoln Electric from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 target price on Lincoln Electric in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $280.00 target price (down from $350.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $299.00.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Shares of Lincoln Electric stock opened at $273.54 on Tuesday. Lincoln Electric has a one year low of $199.13 and a one year high of $310.00. The company has a market cap of $14.99 billion, a PE ratio of 28.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.83. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $260.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $260.32.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.42 by $0.08. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.33% and a net margin of 12.38%.The business had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.16 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Lincoln Electric will post 10.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LECO. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in 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 buying an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Finally, United Community Bank purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

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.