CluenexLincoln Electric LECO
Lincoln Electric scores good on business quality (6.1 of 10). Here is why, in plain words, and what our sealed record shows.
Why it matters
- What Lincoln Electric does
Lincoln Electric Holdings builds welding, cutting, and automation equipment. Industrial manufacturers and fabricators buy these systems to run production lines. The business is preparing its third quarter 2026 results webcast, focusing execution on core manufacturing demand.
- What it does best
Lincoln Electric leads in return on equity at 37.2%, crushing peer ITT at 10.4%. This edge stems from deep customer integration in specialized welding systems that are difficult to swap out.
- The main risk
Net debt sits at $985 million against $309 million in cash. A sharp manufacturing slowdown would strain interest coverage of 13.5x as earnings compress.
Quality, check by check
Scored against its own industry, from company filings.
Operating margin hits 17.8% with an FCF margin near 12%. Profitability remains stable, showing solid earnings power as the business scales.
High switching costs lock in industrial manufacturers who rely on its proprietary welding ecosystems. Its ROE ranks in the top decile of its sector at 82nd percentile.
Revenue grew 5.6% to $4.5 billion, landing in the middle of the pack for its sector. Growth is steady but slower than its prior expansion rate.
Debt-to-equity is 0.9x while interest coverage sits at 13.5x, keeping borrowing costs manageable. Free cash flow reached $543 million, showing steady generation.
Insiders
Executives and directors, from SEC Form 4 filings we read ourselves. Open market trades only; grants, option exercises and pre-planned sales left out.
No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Our sealed record on LECO
Verdicts appear here 30 days after we publish them; members see today's. Each one is in the nightly ledger, fingerprinted the night it was made.
The first sealed verdicts appear here on Oct 11, 2026.
Questions
Lincoln Electric scores good on the Cluenex quality check (6.1 of 10), measured against its own industry. Profitability is fair, moat strong, growth slow and financial health fair.
In the last 90 days of SEC Form 4 filings: No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Oct 27, 2026, before the open.
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Cite this page: Cluenex, “Lincoln Electric (LECO)”, https://cluenex.com/stocks/leco/, data as of Oct 10, 2026.