NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Acquires 999 Shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its position in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 56,428 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 999 shares during the quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC's holdings in Linde were worth $23,625,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Linde in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its stake in Linde by 1,160.0% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 63 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Linde during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Linde during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Linde during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.80% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on LIN. Argus raised Linde to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Linde to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $503.11.

Insider Transactions at Linde

In related news, VP Sean Durbin sold 7,261 shares of Linde stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.42, for a total transaction of $3,314,065.62. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 8,151 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,720,279.42. The trade was a 47.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,477 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $469.74, for a total transaction of $1,163,545.98. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at $610,662. This represents a 65.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,725 shares of company stock valued at $5,385,750 over the last three months. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Linde Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of Linde stock traded up $1.57 on Thursday, hitting $464.08. 1,306,820 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,957,461. The company has a market cap of $218.45 billion, a PE ratio of 34.10, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.00. Linde plc has a 12-month low of $408.65 and a 12-month high of $487.49. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $451.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $447.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.92 by $0.03. Linde had a net margin of 19.89% and a return on equity of 18.71%. The business had revenue of $8.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.75 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Linde plc will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 4th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.29%. Linde's dividend payout ratio is 43.57%.

About Linde

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.