Ayrshire Capital Management LLC Has $5.62 Million Stake in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Ayrshire Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) by 10.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,414 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,285 shares during the quarter. Linde makes up 2.7% of Ayrshire Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Ayrshire Capital Management LLC's holdings in Linde were worth $5,616,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its position in shares of Linde by 144.8% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 71 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Kozak & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Linde during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Linde during the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Linde by 1,733.3% in the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 110 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Linde by 618.8% in the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 115 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.80% of the company's stock.

Linde Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LIN traded up $5.86 on Tuesday, hitting $427.29. The stock had a trading volume of 2,342,458 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,501,202. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $438.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $453.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.96. Linde plc has a twelve month low of $396.07 and a twelve month high of $487.49. The company has a market capitalization of $203.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.94.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.89 by $0.05. Linde had a net margin of 19.33% and a return on equity of 18.16%. The firm had revenue of $8.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.63 EPS. The company's revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Linde plc will post 15.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Linde Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were issued a $1.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $5.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.30%. Linde's dividend payout ratio is presently 42.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. TD Cowen raised shares of Linde from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $480.00 to $515.00 in a research report on Monday. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Linde from $520.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Linde from $490.00 to $480.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $495.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Linde news, Director Paula Rosput Reynolds purchased 100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $441.34 per share, with a total value of $44,134.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 233 shares in the company, valued at $102,832.22. This trade represents a 75.19 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,218 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $434.35, for a total value of $963,388.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 25,926 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,260,958.10. This represents a 7.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Linde Company Profile

Linde plc operates as an industrial gas company in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and South Pacific. It offers atmospheric gases, including oxygen, nitrogen, argon, and rare gases; and process gases, such as carbon dioxide, helium, hydrogen, electronic gases, specialty gases, and acetylene.