Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) saw a significant decrease in short interest in January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 6,510,982 shares, a decrease of 12.5% from the January 15th total of 7,442,834 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,413,213 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.7 days. Currently, 1.4% of the company’s stock are sold short. Currently, 1.4% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 2,413,213 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.7 days.

Linde Stock Up 1.7%

LIN stock opened at $481.00 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $439.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $447.57. The company has a market cap of $224.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.84. Linde has a twelve month low of $387.78 and a twelve month high of $488.54.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The basic materials company reported $4.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.18 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $8.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.64 billion. Linde had a return on equity of 19.52% and a net margin of 20.30%.The business’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.97 EPS. Linde has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 17.400-17.900 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Linde will post 16.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LIN. USS Investment Management Ltd lifted its stake in Linde by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 95,601 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $40,766,000 after purchasing an additional 1,142 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Linde by 220.8% in the fourth quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 34,615 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $14,759,000 after buying an additional 23,824 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado bought a new stake in Linde in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $195,186,000. Maren Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Linde by 35.3% in the fourth quarter. Maren Capital LLC now owns 364,233 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $155,305,000 after buying an additional 94,996 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC boosted its stake in shares of Linde by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 393,231 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $167,681,000 after acquiring an additional 5,786 shares during the period. 82.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on LIN. 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 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Linde from $540.00 to $490.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 12th. Mizuho set a $525.00 price objective on Linde in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $516.00 target price on shares of Linde in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Linde from $540.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $508.20.

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.