Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) Shares Sold by Renaissance Technologies LLC

Renaissance Technologies LLC reduced its position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) by 58.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 39,638 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 55,900 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 0.07% of Lincoln Electric worth $7,431,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Lincoln Electric by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 21,199 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,974,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,737 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $326,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 806 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $151,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,634 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,813,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 4,644 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $871,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company's stock.

Lincoln Electric Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ LECO traded up $5.22 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $186.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 51,723 shares, compared to its average volume of 328,549. The firm has a market cap of $10.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $161.11 and a 12-month high of $242.65. The business's 50 day moving average is $191.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $196.49.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The industrial products company reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.54. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $995.94 million. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 40.19% and a net margin of 11.63%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. Lincoln Electric's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on LECO shares. StockNews.com downgraded Lincoln Electric from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Lincoln Electric from $187.00 to $179.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. KeyCorp upped their price target on Lincoln Electric from $230.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on 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, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $219.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Steven B. Hedlund sold 21,054 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 54,660 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,777,590.20. This represents a 27.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 2.63% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.