Fifth Third Bancorp Has $3.72 Million Position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 1,705.9% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 14,935 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,108 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $3,720,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LECO. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,477 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $468,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 553.4% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $215,000 after acquiring an additional 963 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 362,561 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $68,582,000 after purchasing an additional 29,505 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 8.7% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 137,540 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,017,000 after purchasing an additional 10,961 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 980.8% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 281 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the period. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lincoln Electric news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total transaction of $232,214.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 9,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,560,954.39. This represents a 8.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on LECO. DA Davidson assumed coverage on Lincoln Electric in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $320.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $280.00 price objective (down from $350.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lincoln Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 price target on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $299.38.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Shares of LECO opened at $252.74 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $261.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $263.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.83. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $216.22 and a 52-week high of $310.00. The company has a market cap of $13.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.08, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.20.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.42 by $0.08. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.33% and a net margin of 12.38%.The company had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.16 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 10.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Company Profile

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.