Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc Purchases New Shares in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 2,460 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $653,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,177 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. raised its stake in Lincoln Electric by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 1,832 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $439,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its stake in 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 worth $1,045,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in 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 buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. lifted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 4,314 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,034,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LECO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upgraded Lincoln Electric from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $257.00 to $283.00 in a report on Monday, August 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Lincoln Electric from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. DA Davidson started coverage on Lincoln Electric in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $320.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group assumed coverage on Lincoln Electric in a research note on Monday, August 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $340.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $307.22.

Insider Activity at Lincoln Electric

In related news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 9,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,560,954.39. This trade represents a 8.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Lincoln Electric stock opened at $281.82 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $266.06 and its 200 day moving average is $265.97. The company has a market capitalization of $15.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.15, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.20. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $216.22 and a twelve month high of $310.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

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

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

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