Exane Asset Management Takes Position in Linde PLC $LIN

Key Points

• Exane Asset Management acquired a new stake of 52,057 shares in Linde valued at about $22.2 million, making Linde 5.1% of its holdings and the firm's fifth-largest position.
• Multiple analysts have raised targets (Seaport to $575, Citigroup to $580), and the consensus rating is Buy with an average price target of $521.60.
• Linde raised its quarterly dividend from $1.50 to $1.60 (annualized $6.40), implying a 1.3% yield and a payout ratio of roughly 43.9%.

Exane Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 52,057 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $22,197,000. Linde comprises 5.1% of Exane Asset Management's holdings, making the stock its 5th largest holding.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Linde during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Linde during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new position in shares of Linde in the third quarter valued at $29,000. YANKCOM Partnership grew its holdings in shares of Linde by 195.2% in the third quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 62 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new position in shares of Linde in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors own 82.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Seaport Research Partners raised their target price on shares of Linde from $525.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Mizuho set a $525.00 target price on shares of Linde in a report on Friday, February 6th. DZ Bank lowered shares of Linde from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $460.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Linde from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Linde from $545.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $521.60.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,357 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $480.79, for a total value of $2,094,802.03. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 22,138 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,643,729.02. This trade represents a 16.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 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 transaction of $3,111,800.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 8,151 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,890,227.77. This trade represents a 44.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 20,332 shares of company stock valued at $9,749,257 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Linde Price Performance

Shares of LIN opened at $492.23 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Linde PLC has a 52-week low of $387.78 and a 52-week high of $510.65. The company has a market cap of $228.10 billion, a PE ratio of 33.74, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.78. The business has a fifty day moving average of $491.81 and a 200 day moving average of $453.51.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The basic materials company reported $4.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.18 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $8.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.64 billion. Linde had a net margin of 20.30% and a return on equity of 19.52%. The business's revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.97 EPS. Linde has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 17.400-17.900 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Linde PLC will post 16.54 EPS for the current year.

Linde Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th were issued a $1.60 dividend. This is a boost from Linde's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 11th. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Linde's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.87%.

About Linde

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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