Capital Research Global Investors Raises Position in Linde PLC $LIN

Key Points

• Capital Research Global Investors increased its Linde stake by 8.6% in the fourth quarter, buying 797,866 more shares and lifting its holdings to 10.13 million shares worth about $4.32 billion.
• Linde has drawn generally positive analyst sentiment, with several firms upgrading or reiterating bullish ratings; the consensus rating is Buy with an average price target of $541.91.
• The company reported better-than-expected quarterly results, including EPS of $4.33 and revenue of $8.78 billion, and it announced a quarterly dividend of $1.60 per share payable June 18.

Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) by 8.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,127,594 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 797,866 shares during the period. Linde accounts for about 0.8% of Capital Research Global Investors' portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Capital Research Global Investors owned about 2.17% of Linde worth $4,318,325,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LIN. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Linde during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new position in Linde in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Saranac Partners Ltd bought a new position in Linde in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC boosted its position in Linde by 134.5% during the 4th quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 68 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, High Note Wealth LLC boosted its position in Linde by 108.6% during the 4th quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 73 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. 82.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LIN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Erste Group Bank upgraded Linde from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Linde from $552.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Linde from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $575.00 price objective on shares of Linde in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $560.00 price objective on shares of Linde in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $541.91.

Insider Activity

In other Linde news, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,357 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $480.79, for a total transaction of $2,094,802.03. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 22,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,643,729.02. This trade represents a 16.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sean Durbin sold 6,520 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $477.27, for a total value of $3,111,800.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 8,151 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,890,227.77. The trade was a 44.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Linde Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LIN opened at $507.90 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $234.83 billion, a PE ratio of 33.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.72. The business's fifty day moving average price is $503.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $468.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.69. Linde PLC has a 12 month low of $387.78 and a 12 month high of $521.28.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $4.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.27 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $8.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.60 billion. Linde had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 20.44%.Linde's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.95 earnings per share. Linde has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.600-17.900 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 4.400-4.500 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Linde PLC will post 17.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 4th will be issued a dividend of $1.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 4th. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Linde's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.50%.

Linde Profile

Linde NASDAQ: LIN is a multinational industrial gases and engineering company that supplies gases, related technologies and services to a wide range of industries. The company traces its current form to the 2018 combination of Germany's Linde AG and U.S.-based Praxair, creating one of the largest global providers of industrial, specialty and medical gases. Linde's business model centers on production, processing and distribution of gases as well as the design and construction of the plants and equipment needed to produce them.

Core products and services include atmospheric and process gases such as oxygen, nitrogen and argon; hydrogen and helium; carbon dioxide; and a portfolio of higher‑value specialty and electronic gases.

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