FY2027 EPS Estimates for Linde Increased by Erste Group Bank

Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) – Stock analysts at Erste Group Bank increased their FY2027 EPS estimates for Linde in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, March 24th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now forecasts that the basic materials company will post earnings of $19.45 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $19.42. Erste Group Bank has a “Strong-Buy” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Linde’s current full-year earnings is $16.54 per share.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on LIN. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $530.00 price objective on shares of Linde in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Linde from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Linde in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Mizuho set a $525.00 price objective on Linde in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Linde from $540.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Linde presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $515.20.

Linde Stock Down 0.9%

LIN stock opened at $491.12 on Friday. Linde has a one year low of $387.78 and a one year high of $510.65. The firm has a market cap of $227.58 billion, a PE ratio of 33.66, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.82. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $477.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $451.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.88.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The basic materials company reported $4.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.18 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $8.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.64 billion. Linde had a net margin of 20.30% and a return on equity of 19.52%. Linde’s revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous 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.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Linde

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Linde during the second quarter worth $25,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Linde in the third quarter valued at $27,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp acquired a new position in Linde during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. YANKCOM Partnership grew its stake in Linde by 195.2% during the 3rd quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 62 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in Linde during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. 82.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 9,455 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $480.45, for a total value of $4,542,654.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 22,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,636,202.10. This trade represents a 29.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sean Durbin sold 6,520 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $477.27, for a total transaction of $3,111,800.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 8,151 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,890,227.77. The trade was a 44.44% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,332 shares of company stock valued at $9,749,257. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Linde Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $1.60 per share. This is a positive change from Linde’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 11th. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Linde’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.87%.

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.