Channel Wealth LLC Acquires 2,643 Shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Channel Wealth LLC grew its position in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) by 35.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,028 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,643 shares during the period. Linde comprises approximately 1.5% of Channel Wealth LLC's holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Channel Wealth LLC's holdings in Linde were worth $4,669,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in LIN. Helios Capital Management PTE. Ltd. raised its holdings in Linde by 85.2% during the 4th quarter. Helios Capital Management PTE. Ltd. now owns 2,500 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,047,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in shares of Linde by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 211,395 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $88,505,000 after buying an additional 1,320 shares during the period. Markel Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Linde by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 168,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $70,337,000 after buying an additional 13,000 shares during the last quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC lifted its holdings in Linde by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 7,788 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,261,000 after buying an additional 332 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in Linde by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 138,500 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $57,986,000 after acquiring an additional 676 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.80% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP David P. Strauss sold 1,987 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $457.04, for a total transaction of $908,138.48. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 22,639 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,346,928.56. This trade represents a 8.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Sean Durbin sold 7,261 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.42, for a total transaction of $3,314,065.62. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 8,151 shares in the company, valued at $3,720,279.42. The trade was a 47.11% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on LIN shares. Argus upgraded Linde to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Linde to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Linde has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $503.11.

Linde Price Performance

Shares of LIN stock traded up $2.45 on Friday, reaching $472.71. The company had a trading volume of 1,352,718 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,961,067. The business's 50-day moving average is $452.37 and its 200 day moving average is $448.36. Linde plc has a one year low of $408.65 and a one year high of $487.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $222.52 billion, a PE ratio of 34.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.00.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.92 by $0.03. Linde had a return on equity of 18.71% and a net margin of 19.89%. The business had revenue of $8.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.24 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.75 EPS. Linde's quarterly revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Linde plc will post 16.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 4th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. Linde's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.57%.

Linde Company Profile

Linde plc operates as an industrial gas company in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and South Pacific. It offers atmospheric gases, including oxygen, nitrogen, argon, and rare gases; and process gases, such as carbon dioxide, helium, hydrogen, electronic gases, specialty gases, and acetylene.