Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $184.00, but opened at $170.02. Lincoln Electric shares last traded at $173.54, with a volume of 38,542 shares changing hands.

The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.21 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $365.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $974.39 million. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 40.19% and a net margin of 11.63%. The business’s revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.23 EPS.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio is 36.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $187.00 to $179.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $178.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $230.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $219.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Steven B. Hedlund sold 21,054 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $4,536,505.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 54,660 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,777,590.20. This trade represents a 27.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of LECO. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Lincoln Electric by 28.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 431 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $83,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Lincoln Electric during the third quarter worth $499,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in Lincoln Electric during the fourth quarter worth $496,000. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Lincoln Electric by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 5,262 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $986,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Lincoln Electric by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 358,331 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $67,176,000 after buying an additional 2,088 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

The business’s 50 day moving average is $188.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $196.21. The firm has a market cap of $9.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

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.