Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Acquires Shares of 169,000 Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 169,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $70,755,000. Linde makes up about 0.8% of Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Linde during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Linde by 1,160.0% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 63 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in Linde in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Linde in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Linde in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 82.80% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LIN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Linde to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Argus upgraded Linde to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $503.11.

Insider Buying and Selling at Linde

In other news, VP David P. Strauss sold 1,987 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $457.04, for a total value of $908,138.48. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 22,639 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,346,928.56. This trade represents a 8.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Linde Stock Performance

NASDAQ LIN traded down $5.44 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $462.51. 2,241,948 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,958,098. The stock has a market capitalization of $217.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.98, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.89. The business has a 50 day moving average of $451.46 and a 200-day moving average of $447.64. Linde plc has a 12-month low of $408.65 and a 12-month high of $487.49.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.92 by $0.03. Linde had a net margin of 19.89% and a return on equity of 18.71%. The company had revenue of $8.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.75 EPS. Linde's revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Linde plc will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 4th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. Linde's payout ratio is currently 43.57%.

Linde Company 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.