KBC Group NV Has $290.99 Million Stock Holdings in Linde PLC $LIN

Key Points

• KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Linde by 5.6% to 682,460 shares valued at $290,994,000, making Linde 0.7% of KBC's portfolio and its 20th-largest holding.
• Corporate insiders have sold a total of 20,332 shares worth about $9.75 million in the last 90 days, including EVP Sean Durbin (6,520 shares) and VP Guillermo Bichara (4,357 shares).
• Linde raised its quarterly dividend to $1.60 per share (annualized $6.40, 1.3% yield), reported a slight EPS beat of $4.20 vs. $4.18, and carries a consensus analyst rating of Buy with an average target of $521.60.

KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 682,460 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 36,180 shares during the period. Linde comprises 0.7% of KBC Group NV's portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. KBC Group NV owned about 0.15% of Linde worth $290,994,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Embree Financial Group raised its holdings in shares of Linde by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Embree Financial Group now owns 469 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $223,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc grew its position in Linde by 10.2% in the second quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 237 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $111,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont raised its stake in Linde by 0.3% during the third quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 8,571 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $4,071,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Baldwin Wealth Partners LLC MA raised its stake in Linde by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Baldwin Wealth Partners LLC MA now owns 711 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mayport LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Linde by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Mayport LLC now owns 504 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $215,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the period. 82.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Linde news, EVP Sean Durbin sold 6,520 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 8,151 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,890,227.77. This trade represents a 44.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,357 shares of the business'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 completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 22,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,643,729.02. This represents a 16.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 20,332 shares of company stock valued at $9,749,257 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Linde Price Performance

Linde stock opened at $497.94 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market cap of $230.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.78. The business's fifty day moving average is $490.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $453.33. Linde PLC has a 52 week low of $387.78 and a 52 week high of $510.65.

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

Linde Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $1.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 11th. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from Linde's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. Linde's payout ratio is currently 43.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LIN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Linde from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $530.00 price target 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 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Linde from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Mizuho set a $525.00 price objective on shares of Linde in a report on Friday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $521.60.

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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