Mizuho Securities USA LLC Has $18.89 Million Stake in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its position in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) by 44.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 45,129 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 13,957 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Linde were worth $18,894,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Linde in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Linde by 1,160.0% in the fourth 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. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its holdings in shares of Linde by 144.8% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 71 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Linde during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Kozak & Associates Inc. raised its position in Linde by 38.6% in the 4th quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 97 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. 82.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LIN. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Linde from $490.00 to $480.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. 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 research report on Monday, January 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $501.82.

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Linde Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of LIN traded up $3.98 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $461.43. The stock had a trading volume of 1,597,735 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,727,317. The business's fifty day moving average is $454.32 and its 200 day moving average is $454.19. Linde plc has a 52-week low of $410.69 and a 52-week high of $487.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The firm has a market cap of $218.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.94.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.97 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Linde plc will post 16.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Linde Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This is a boost from Linde's previous quarterly dividend of $1.39. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.30%. Linde's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.09%.

Insider Activity at Linde

In related news, VP Juergen Nowicki sold 6,782 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.62, for a total transaction of $3,117,142.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,765 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,786,289.30. The trade was a 31.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,477 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $469.74, for a total value of $1,163,545.98. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at $610,662. This represents a 65.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,159 shares of company stock valued at $5,603,843 over the last quarter. 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.