Linde PLC $LIN Shares Purchased by Baker Avenue Asset Management LP

Baker Avenue Asset Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) by 6.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 44,186 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 2,653 shares during the period. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP’s holdings in Linde were worth $18,841,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Linde in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,752,000. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Linde by 14.1% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 777 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $325,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Linde by 19.8% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,569 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $736,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its position in Linde by 19.3% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 897 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $421,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC grew its position in Linde by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 5,625 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,639,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. 82.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on LIN. Seaport Research Partners lifted their target price on Linde from $525.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $575.00 target price on shares of Linde in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Linde from $580.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $560.00 target price on shares of Linde in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Linde from $550.00 to $579.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $540.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,357 shares of Linde stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $480.79, for a total value of $2,094,802.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 22,138 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,643,729.02. This trade represents a 16.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sean Durbin sold 6,520 shares of Linde stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $477.27, for a total value of $3,111,800.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 8,151 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,890,227.77. The trade was a 44.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Linde Stock Performance

Shares of LIN opened at $507.87 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $500.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $464.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $234.81 billion, a PE ratio of 33.72, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.73. Linde PLC has a 1 year low of $387.78 and a 1 year high of $521.28.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $4.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.27 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $8.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.60 billion. Linde had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 20.44%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.95 EPS. Linde has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.600-17.900 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 4.400-4.500 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Linde PLC will post 17.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Linde Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 4th will be paid a $1.60 dividend. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 4th. Linde’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.50%.

Linde Company 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.