Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO Stock Position Lessened by VELA Investment Management LLC

VELA Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 12.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 35,075 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 4,788 shares during the quarter. Lincoln Electric accounts for approximately 2.0% of VELA Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. VELA Investment Management LLC owned 0.06% of Lincoln Electric worth $8,272,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the third quarter valued at $1,020,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp boosted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 216.1% during the 2nd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 53,945 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $11,184,000 after acquiring an additional 36,878 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 13.0% in the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 86,305 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $20,353,000 after acquiring an additional 9,897 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 10.3% during the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 106,746 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,131,000 after acquiring an additional 9,974 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric during the second quarter worth approximately $141,550,000. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on LECO. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $265.00 to $252.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Roth Mkm set a $285.00 price objective on Lincoln Electric and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Lincoln Electric from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lincoln Electric currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $249.50.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

NASDAQ LECO opened at $259.19 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $14.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.26. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $161.11 and a 52-week high of $264.87. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $242.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $237.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.08. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 40.33% and a net margin of 12.56%.The company had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.05 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.14 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current year.

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.