Fisher Asset Management LLC Buys 16,821 Shares of Linde PLC $LIN

Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) by 7.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 255,699 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,821 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Linde were worth $109,028,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Linde in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new stake in Linde in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Saranac Partners Ltd bought a new stake in Linde in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC lifted its position in Linde by 134.5% in the fourth quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 68 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Guerra Advisors Inc bought a new position in shares of Linde during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 82.80% of the company’s stock.

Linde Price Performance

Shares of LIN stock opened at $517.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $239.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.37, a PEG ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s fifty day moving average is $500.32 and its 200 day moving average is $463.17. Linde PLC has a twelve month low of $387.78 and a twelve month high of $521.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $4.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.27 by $0.06. Linde had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 20.44%.The firm had revenue of $8.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.95 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Linde has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.600-17.900 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 4.400-4.500 EPS. Research analysts expect that Linde PLC will post 17.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 4th. Linde’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Sean Durbin sold 6,520 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $477.27, for a total transaction of $3,111,800.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,151 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,890,227.77. This trade represents a 44.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,357 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $480.79, for a total value of $2,094,802.03. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 22,138 shares in the company, valued at $10,643,729.02. This trade represents a 16.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on LIN shares. Mizuho set a $525.00 target price on Linde in a report on Friday, February 6th. Seaport Research Partners upped their target price on Linde from $525.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $530.00 target price on shares of Linde in a report on Friday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $560.00 target price on shares of Linde in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Linde from $550.00 to $579.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. One investment 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $540.00.

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.