Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) Given Average Recommendation of "Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Linde has an average analyst rating of Buy from 12 brokerages, with a consensus 12-month price target of $540. Most analysts are bullish, including one strong buy, ten buys, and one hold.
• The company reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $4.33 versus $4.27 expected and revenue of $8.78 billion versus $8.60 billion expected. Revenue also rose 8.2% year over year.
• Linde declared a quarterly dividend of $1.60 per share, payable June 18 to shareholders of record on June 4, for an annualized yield of about 1.3%. Insiders have also sold shares recently, while institutional ownership remains high at 82.8%.

Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Buy" from the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $540.00.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Linde from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Linde from $525.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. DZ Bank cut shares of Linde from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $460.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Linde from $550.00 to $579.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $530.00 price target on shares of Linde in a research note on Friday, February 6th.

Linde Price Performance

Linde stock opened at $506.11 on Monday. Linde has a twelve month low of $387.78 and a twelve month high of $521.28. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $497.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $459.51. The company has a market capitalization of $234.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.61, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $4.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.27 by $0.06. Linde had a net margin of 20.44% and a return on equity of 19.80%. The firm had revenue of $8.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.95 EPS. The company's revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Linde has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.600-17.900 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 4.400-4.500 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Linde will post 17.86 EPS for the current year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 4th will be paid a dividend of $1.60 per share. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 4th. Linde's dividend payout ratio is presently 42.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,357 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $480.79, for a total transaction of $2,094,802.03. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 22,138 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,643,729.02. This represents a 16.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sean Durbin sold 6,520 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $477.27, for a total transaction of $3,111,800.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 8,151 shares in the company, valued at $3,890,227.77. The trade was a 44.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 20,332 shares of company stock worth $9,749,257 over the last 90 days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Linde

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC raised its position in shares of Linde by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC now owns 27,341 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $11,658,000 after buying an additional 2,234 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Linde during the 3rd quarter valued at $4,243,000. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd raised its position in shares of Linde by 45.5% during the 3rd quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 236,206 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $112,198,000 after buying an additional 73,850 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service raised its position in shares of Linde by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 967,516 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $459,570,000 after buying an additional 24,624 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its position in shares of Linde by 143.4% during the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 15,044 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $6,415,000 after buying an additional 8,863 shares in the last quarter. 82.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Linde Company 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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