Linde PLC $LIN is Impax Asset Management Group plc's Largest Position

Key Points

• Impax Asset Management cut its stake in Linde by 3.5% in Q4 to 1,841,939 shares, leaving Linde as Impax's largest holding at 4.9% of its portfolio and representing 0.39% of Linde valued at $785,384,000.
• Company insiders have been net sellers — executives sold 20,332 shares worth about $9.75 million over the past 90 days (notably VP Guillermo Bichara and EVP Sean Durbin) and insiders now own just 0.70% of the stock.
• Linde slightly beat Q4 EPS expectations ($4.20 vs. $4.18), raised its quarterly dividend to $1.60 ($6.40 annual, 1.3% yield), provided FY2026 EPS guidance of $17.40–17.90, and carries an average analyst rating of Buy with a $527.80 consensus price target.

Impax Asset Management Group plc reduced its stake in Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,841,939 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 66,875 shares during the quarter. Linde makes up 4.9% of Impax Asset Management Group plc's investment portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Impax Asset Management Group plc owned 0.39% of Linde worth $785,384,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LIN. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Linde during the 4th quarter valued at $2,752,000. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Linde by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 777 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Linde by 19.8% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,569 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $736,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its position in shares of Linde by 19.3% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 897 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $421,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Linde by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 5,625 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,639,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. 82.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Linde

In other Linde news, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 9,455 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $480.45, for a total value of $4,542,654.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 22,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,636,202.10. The trade was a 29.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sean Durbin sold 6,520 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 8,151 shares in the company, valued at $3,890,227.77. The trade was a 44.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 20,332 shares of company stock worth $9,749,257. 0.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Linde Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ LIN opened at $510.30 on Friday. Linde PLC has a 52 week low of $387.78 and a 52 week high of $510.65. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $495.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $454.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $236.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.78.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last issued 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 business had revenue of $8.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.97 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Linde has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 17.400-17.900 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Linde PLC will post 17.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Linde Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders 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 is a positive change from Linde's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Linde's payout ratio is presently 43.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Linde in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Seaport Research Partners increased their price target on Linde from $525.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Linde from $512.00 to $552.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday. DZ Bank downgraded Linde from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $460.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Linde from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $455.00 to $525.00 in a research note on Friday, March 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $527.80.

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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