Linde PLC $LIN Shares Bought by Verdence Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Linde PLC by 137.9%, now owning 2,995 shares valued at approximately $1.4 million, according to SEC filings.
• Linde reported quarterly earnings of $4.09 EPS, surpassing estimates, and announced a $1.50 quarterly dividend for investors, equating to an annualized yield of 1.3%.
• Shareholder activity saw significant insider trading, with Director Stephen F. Angel selling over 50,000 shares, reducing his position by 9.48%.

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) by 137.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,995 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,736 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Linde were worth $1,405,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. North Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Linde during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Linde during the first quarter worth about $41,000. eCIO Inc. bought a new position in shares of Linde during the first quarter worth about $45,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd lifted its position in shares of Linde by 445.0% during the first quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 109 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nova Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Linde during the first quarter worth about $52,000. 82.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Stephen F. Angel sold 50,309 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.38, for a total value of $23,815,274.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 480,543 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $227,479,445.34. This trade represents a 9.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Linde Trading Up 0.6%

Linde stock opened at $456.64 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market cap of $214.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.93. Linde PLC has a 1 year low of $408.65 and a 1 year high of $487.49. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $474.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $464.49.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The basic materials company reported $4.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.03 by $0.06. Linde had a net margin of 20.20% and a return on equity of 19.09%. The firm had revenue of $8.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.35 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.85 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Linde has set its FY 2025 guidance at 16.300-16.500 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 4.100-4.20 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Linde PLC will post 16.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th were paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Linde's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LIN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Linde from $510.00 to $507.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Linde from $470.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Linde from $530.00 to $535.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Linde in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $520.00.

Linde 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.

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