Ethic Inc. Reduces Stake in Linde PLC $LIN

Ethic Inc. cut its stake in shares of Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) by 10.2% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 11,738 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,333 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Linde were worth $5,576,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Linde in the second quarter worth $25,000. eCIO Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Linde in the first quarter valued at $45,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute bought a new stake in shares of Linde in the 2nd quarter worth about $48,000. Nova Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Linde during the 1st quarter worth about $52,000. Finally, Hanson & Doremus Investment Management grew its holdings in Linde by 24.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 122 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.80% of the company’s stock.

Linde Trading Up 0.4%

LIN opened at $426.54 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $419.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $452.02. The company has a market capitalization of $199.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.57, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.85. Linde PLC has a 52 week low of $387.78 and a 52 week high of $486.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $4.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.18 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $8.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.62 billion. Linde had a return on equity of 19.38% and a net margin of 21.17%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.94 EPS. Linde has set its FY 2025 guidance at 16.350-16.450 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 4.100-4.200 EPS. Analysts forecast that Linde PLC will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Linde Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were given a dividend of $1.50 per share. 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 40.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on LIN shares. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Linde from $540.00 to $490.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Linde from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Mizuho set a $495.00 target price on Linde in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets set a $501.00 target price on shares of Linde in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $501.00.

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.