Foundations Investment Advisors LLC Trims Position in Linde PLC $LIN

Key Points

• Foundations Investment Advisors LLC cut its Linde stake by 67.5% in the fourth quarter, leaving it with 1,475 shares worth about $629,000.
• Several analysts remain constructive on Linde, with an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of about $540, though DZ Bank recently downgraded the stock to Hold.
• Linde reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings and revenue, raised guidance, and also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.60 per share, or $6.40 annually.

Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lessened its position in shares of Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) by 67.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,475 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 3,069 shares during the quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Linde were worth $629,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Linde in the second quarter worth about $25,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new stake in Linde in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in Linde in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Saranac Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in Linde in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Caitlin John LLC purchased a new stake in Linde in the third quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Mizuho set a $525.00 price target on Linde in a research report on Friday, February 6th. UBS Group upped their price target on Linde from $550.00 to $579.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. 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 report on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Linde from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, DZ Bank cut Linde from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $460.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Linde presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $540.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,357 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was 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 directly owned 22,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,643,729.02. This trade represents a 16.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Sean Durbin sold 6,520 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $477.27, for a total value of $3,111,800.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,151 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,890,227.77. The trade was a 44.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Linde Price Performance

Shares of Linde stock opened at $497.41 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $501.45 and a 200 day moving average of $466.12. Linde PLC has a 12 month low of $387.78 and a 12 month high of $521.28. The firm has a market cap of $229.98 billion, a PE ratio of 33.03, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $4.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.27 by $0.06. Linde had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 20.44%.The company had revenue of $8.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.95 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. 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, research analysts expect that Linde PLC will post 17.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

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

Linde Company 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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