Linde PLC $LIN Stake Reduced by BDF Gestion

BDF Gestion cut its stake in Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,916 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,856 shares during the period. BDF Gestion’s holdings in Linde were worth $4,235,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of LIN. Breakwater Capital Group increased its holdings in shares of Linde by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Breakwater Capital Group now owns 980 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $460,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Canopy Partners LLC boosted its stake in Linde by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Canopy Partners LLC now owns 788 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $370,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA grew its position in Linde by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA now owns 1,192 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $559,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Clarendon Private LLC increased its stake in shares of Linde by 1.0% in the second quarter. Clarendon Private LLC now owns 2,273 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,066,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Linde by 1.4% during the second quarter. Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC now owns 1,635 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $767,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on LIN shares. CICC Research began coverage on Linde in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $510.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Linde from $475.00 to $455.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Linde in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Linde from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and eight have given a Buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $501.00.

Linde Price Performance

NASDAQ LIN opened at $421.43 on Friday. Linde PLC has a 1 year low of $387.78 and a 1 year high of $486.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $196.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.82. The business’s fifty day moving average is $422.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $454.31.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $4.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.18 by $0.03. Linde had a return on equity of 19.38% and a net margin of 21.17%.The business had revenue of $8.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.94 EPS. Linde’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Linde has set its FY 2025 guidance at 16.350-16.450 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 4.100-4.200 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Linde PLC will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Linde’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.19%.

About Linde

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.