Lincoln Electric's Options Turn Mixed While ITW Lines Up Bullish: GTA Terminal Data for Fabricators and Welding Shops (November 6-10, 2026)

Two companies make a large share of the welding machines on American shop floors and job sites: Lincoln Electric and Illinois Tool Works, the parent of the Miller welder brand. Both stocks sit in uptrends, but the options money around them is pointing in different directions. According to GTA Terminal data from Global Traders Academy, Lincoln Electric's options flow slipped to a slight put lean in the latest scan while its chart stayed strong, and Illinois Tool Works lined up bullish on chart, options and dark pools. Here is what each read shows and what it can mean for fabricators, pipeline crews and machine shops planning to add welders, positioners or cutting tables.

Lincoln Electric: strong chart, mixed money

Lincoln Electric (LECO) closed at $284.44 on Monday, November 9. The GTA Terminal data put the stock above its 20-day average of $270.11 and its 50-day average of $267.41, 84% of the way up its 20-day range of $250.62 to $291.12. That is a healthy chart.

The options money was less sure. In the scan reported before Tuesday's open, 42% of LECO's options premium went into calls and 58% into puts, a mixed read. On November 9, 99,002 LECO shares traded off the exchanges, 0.6x the 20-session normal, too light to show a direction. The Wire's conclusion: the chart leans bullish, the options flow and dark pools are mixed, and price has to settle it at $270.11 or $291.12. That is a shift from the session before: in the November 6 scan, 85% of LECO's premium was in calls. You can follow the stock on the Lincoln Electric quote page.

Illinois Tool Works: all three reads line up

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) traded at $288.50 during the November 9 session, above its 20-day average of $278.47 and 50-day average of $271.99, 75% of the way up a 20-day range of $262.86 to $297.17. In the latest scan, 70% of its options premium went into calls and 30% into puts, and the Wire read chart, options and dark pools as all leaning bullish, with the 20-day average at $278.47 as the level to hold.

That call lean is a turn from the previous week. In the scan behind the Wire's November 6 dark-pool check on ITW, 85% of its premium had been in puts. That day 513,575 shares traded off the exchanges, 1.0x normal and 26.7% of volume, a neutral reading. The ITW price and chart page tracks the next sessions.

• LECO, Nov 9: closed $284.44, 42% calls / 58% puts, dark pools 99,002 shares (0.6x)

• LECO, Nov 6 scan: 85% calls

• ITW, Nov 9: $288.50, 70% calls / 30% puts, chart, options and dark pools all bullish

• ITW, Nov 6 scan: 85% puts, dark pools 513,575 shares (1.0x)

What it means for fabricators and welding shops

Welder makers sell into construction, energy, shipbuilding and general manufacturing, so their stocks are a rough gauge of how investors see metalworking demand.

• Two uptrends, two moods. Both stocks trade near the top of their recent ranges, which fits steady demand for welding equipment. The options money flipped in opposite directions over the same few sessions, a reminder that short-term flow is noisy.

• Pricing power is the thing to watch. Strong supplier stocks often go with firm list prices. If you plan to buy a fleet of welders, a plasma table or a robotic cell, quotes in hand before a new price list can help.

• Match the purchase to the backlog. A machine that pays for itself on signed work is a sound buy whatever the options market does next week.

For the first look at this group, see our post on Lincoln Electric, ESAB and Ingersoll Rand for fabricators, and our read on GE, Honeywell and Eaton options flow.

A signal, not a guarantee

Options flow shows where money went in a scan, not whether a trade was a bet or a hedge, and a mixed read can resolve either way. These figures are a signal, not a guarantee, and nothing here is investment advice. Every figure above is dated and comes from Global Traders Academy's GTA Terminal.

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