Nuveen Asset Management LLC Sells 426,728 Shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) by 8.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,899,069 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 426,728 shares during the period. Linde accounts for approximately 0.6% of Nuveen Asset Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned 1.03% of Linde worth $2,051,093,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of LIN. OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC purchased a new stake in Linde in the fourth quarter valued at $11,974,000. Morse Asset Management Inc grew its position in shares of Linde by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 13,888 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $5,815,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario boosted its position in Linde by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 29,805 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $12,478,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Linde by 193.9% during the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 47,278 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $19,794,000 after purchasing an additional 31,194 shares during the period. Finally, Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC raised its stake in shares of Linde by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC now owns 1,054 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $441,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.80% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,477 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the vice president now owns 1,300 shares in the company, valued at $610,662. The trade was a 65.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Juergen Nowicki sold 6,782 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $459.62, for a total transaction of $3,117,142.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,765 shares in the company, valued at $6,786,289.30. The trade was a 31.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Linde Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LIN traded up $3.55 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $457.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,845,722 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,942,665. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $451.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $447.77. Linde plc has a one year low of $408.65 and a one year high of $487.49. The company has a market cap of $215.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.00.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.95 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $8.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.75 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Linde plc will post 16.54 EPS for the current year.

Linde Dividend Announcement

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 issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 4th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.31%. Linde's dividend payout ratio is currently 43.57%.

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.