Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) Short Interest Update

Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 8,441,173 shares, an increase of 24.9% from the November 30th total of 6,758,131 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,439,334 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days. Currently, 1.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Currently, 1.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,439,334 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho set a $495.00 price objective on Linde in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Linde from $475.00 to $455.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $516.00 target price on shares of Linde in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Linde from $535.00 to $520.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets set a $501.00 price objective on shares of Linde in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Linde has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $501.00.

Linde Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:LIN traded down $1.97 on Thursday, reaching $426.39. 1,526,695 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,106,121. The stock has a market capitalization of $199.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.85. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $418.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $451.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Linde has a 52 week low of $387.78 and a 52 week high of $486.38.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $4.18 by $0.03. The company 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%.Linde’s quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $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. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Linde will post 16.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Linde Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 3rd. Linde’s payout ratio is currently 40.19%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Linde

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LIN. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Linde during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Linde during the third quarter valued at $27,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Linde during the third quarter valued at $29,000. YANKCOM Partnership increased its holdings in Linde by 195.2% in the 3rd quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 62 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Guerra Advisors Inc bought a new stake in Linde in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. 82.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.