Guardian Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 4,591 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $1,928,000.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Linde in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Linde by 1,160.0% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 63 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Linde during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased 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 purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Linde in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. 82.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Linde Price Performance
Shares of NASDAQ:LIN traded up $3.30 during trading on Thursday, hitting $464.73. 1,492,815 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,726,610. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Linde plc has a 1-year low of $410.69 and a 1-year high of $487.49. The company has a market capitalization of $219.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.94. The business's 50 day moving average is $455.63 and its 200-day moving average is $454.31.
Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.93 by $0.04. Linde had a return on equity of 18.71% and a net margin of 19.89%. Equities analysts forecast that Linde plc will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current year.
Linde Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a $1.50 dividend. This is a boost from Linde's previous quarterly dividend of $1.39. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. Linde's dividend payout ratio is 44.09%.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
LIN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen raised shares of Linde from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $480.00 to $515.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Linde from $490.00 to $480.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Linde currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $501.82.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on LIN
Insider Activity
In other Linde news, VP Juergen Nowicki sold 6,782 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $459.62, for a total transaction of $3,117,142.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,786,289.30. This trade represents a 31.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,477 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.74, for a total transaction of $1,163,545.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,300 shares in the company, valued at $610,662. This trade represents a 65.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,159 shares of company stock valued at $5,603,843. Insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.
About Linde
(
Free Report)
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.
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