Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC Boosts Stake in Linde PLC $LIN

Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) by 276.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,994 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 1,464 shares during the period. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Linde were worth $947,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in LIN. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Linde during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. YANKCOM Partnership raised its stake in shares of Linde by 195.2% in the third quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 62 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Albion Financial Group UT raised its stake in shares of Linde by 87.8% in the third quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 77 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. eCIO Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Linde during the first quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new stake in Linde in the second quarter valued at approximately $48,000. 82.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LIN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Linde from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. CICC Research began coverage on shares of Linde in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $510.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Linde from $540.00 to $490.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Linde in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Mizuho set a $495.00 price target on shares of Linde in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Linde presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $501.00.

Linde Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LIN opened at $439.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $205.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.45, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.85. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $417.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $450.52. Linde PLC has a 12 month low of $387.78 and a 12 month high of $486.38.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $4.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.18 by $0.03. Linde had a net margin of 21.17% and a return on equity of 19.38%. The firm had revenue of $8.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.94 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 expect that Linde PLC will post 16.54 EPS for the current year.

Linde Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 3rd. Linde’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.19%.

Linde 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.