58,459 Shares of Linde PLC $LIN Purchased by Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI

Key Points

• Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel acquired 58,459 Linde shares worth approximately $27.7 million, making Linde 1.7% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 82.8% of the company.
• Linde reported quarterly EPS of $4.50 and revenue of $9.29 billion, exceeding analyst expectations, while revenue increased 9.3% year over year. The company also pays a $1.60 quarterly dividend, yielding about 1.3% annually.
• Analysts maintain a broadly positive outlook, with Linde holding an average “Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $545.80, compared with a recent share price of $483.73.

Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI acquired a new stake in shares of Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 58,459 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $27,748,000. Linde makes up about 1.7% of Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI's portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Davidson Trust Co. bought a new position in shares of Linde in the 3rd quarter worth about $826,000. GK Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Linde during the third quarter worth about $64,000. Bullock Wealth Management Group grew its holdings in Linde by 1.2% in the third quarter. Bullock Wealth Management Group now owns 2,340 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,099,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Riversedge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Linde by 62.8% in the third quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 1,180 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $560,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares during the period. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital increased its stake in shares of Linde by 42.3% during the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 6,722 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,238,000 after purchasing an additional 1,997 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.80% of the company's stock.

Linde Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of LIN stock opened at $483.73 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Linde PLC has a 12-month low of $387.78 and a 12-month high of $548.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $222.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.71. The firm's 50 day moving average is $477.97 and its 200 day moving average is $497.96.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $4.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.49 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $9.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.02 billion. Linde had a net margin of 20.43% and a return on equity of 20.09%. The company's revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.09 EPS. Linde has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.700-17.900 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 4.450-4.550 EPS. Research analysts expect that Linde PLC will post 17.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.60 per share. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 3rd. Linde's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group cut their price target on Linde from $612.00 to $574.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Berenberg Bank reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Linde from $580.00 to $575.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Evercore raised their price target on Linde from $515.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $580.00 price target on Linde and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Linde currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $545.80.

Linde Profile

Linde plc NASDAQ: LIN is a global industrial gases and engineering company that supplies gases, related equipment and process technologies to customers in healthcare, manufacturing, chemicals, energy, food and beverage, electronics, and other industries. Its products include oxygen, nitrogen, argon, hydrogen, helium, carbon dioxide and specialty gases.

The company provides gases through on-site production facilities, pipelines, bulk deliveries and packaged cylinders. It also designs and builds industrial gas plants and offers technologies and services for applications such as hydrogen production, carbon capture, clean energy, semiconductor manufacturing, metal fabrication and medical care.

Linde traces its history to 1879, when German engineer Carl von Linde developed refrigeration and gas-related technologies.

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