Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) Reaches New 1-Year High at $477.96

Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $477.96 and last traded at $474.52, with a volume of 61307 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $472.73.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LIN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America raised their price objective on Linde from $495.00 to $516.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Linde from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Linde from $460.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. HSBC reduced their price objective on shares of Linde from $458.00 to $452.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $477.00 target price on shares of Linde in a research note on Friday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $484.18.

Linde Trading Up 1.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock's 50-day moving average is $447.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $445.93. The company has a market cap of $229.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.94.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The basic materials company reported $3.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.79 by $0.06. Linde had a return on equity of 17.92% and a net margin of 19.49%. The firm had revenue of $8.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.57 EPS. The company's revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Linde plc will post 15.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be issued a $1.39 dividend. This represents a $5.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 4th. Linde's payout ratio is 43.13%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Linde

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Linde by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,796,924 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,434,406,000 after purchasing an additional 141,322 shares in the last quarter. Provence Wealth Management Group boosted its holdings in Linde by 655.7% in the 4th quarter. Provence Wealth Management Group now owns 597 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $245,000 after buying an additional 518 shares during the period. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC increased its stake in Linde by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC now owns 5,278 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,168,000 after buying an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC purchased a new stake in Linde in the 4th quarter worth $1,897,000. Finally, Cloverfields Capital Group LP bought a new stake in Linde during the fourth quarter valued at about $718,000. 82.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.