Stifel Nicolaus Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) Stock

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) had its price objective lifted by equities research analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $195.00 to $216.00 in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “hold” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ target price would suggest a potential upside of 3.40% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $225.17.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Lincoln Electric stock traded down $0.11 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $208.89. 45,931 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 313,134. Lincoln Electric has a twelve month low of $169.51 and a twelve month high of $261.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.85. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $203.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $195.61. The firm has a market cap of $11.79 billion, a PE ratio of 24.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.16.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.09. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 11.93% and a return on equity of 40.03%. The business had revenue of $983.76 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $988.07 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Lincoln Electric will post 8.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Lincoln Electric

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 97.9% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 283 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 41.5% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 308.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 335 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric during the second quarter valued at about $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

About Lincoln Electric

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells welding, cutting, and brazing products worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Americas Welding, International Welding, and The Harris Products Group. It offers brazing and soldering filler metals, arc welding equipment, plasma and oxyfuel cutting systems, wire feeding systems, fume control equipment, welding accessories, and specialty gas regulators, and education solutions, as well as a portfolio of automated solutions for joining, cutting, material handling, module assembly, and end of line testing, as well as involved in brazing and soldering alloys, and in the retail business in the United States.