Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) Stock Position Decreased by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 19.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 463,130 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 110,893 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned 0.81% of Lincoln Electric worth $87,365,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Eagle Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Lincoln Electric by 2,984.6% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 439,065 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $95,479,000 after purchasing an additional 424,831 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 7.0% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,856,125 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $474,129,000 after acquiring an additional 121,914 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 2nd quarter valued at $12,627,000. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric during the first quarter worth $11,888,000. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its position in Lincoln Electric by 1,755.5% during the second quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 45,849 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,649,000 after purchasing an additional 43,378 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of Lincoln Electric stock opened at $185.45 on Friday. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $164.00 and a 12-month high of $261.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 2.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $192.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $210.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.69, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.14.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.48% and a return on equity of 42.24%. Lincoln Electric’s quarterly revenue was down 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 8.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.53%. Lincoln Electric’s payout ratio is presently 30.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lincoln Electric news, SVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.96, for a total value of $193,556.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 11,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,966,880.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on LECO shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Lincoln Electric from $209.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Lincoln Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $218.29.

Lincoln Electric Company Profile

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.