World Investment Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 1,238 Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,238 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $590,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LIN. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Linde in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Kozak & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Linde during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Linde during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its holdings in Linde by 133.3% in the 2nd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 98 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in Linde in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $47,000. Institutional investors own 82.80% of the company's stock.

Linde Price Performance

NASDAQ:LIN traded up $1.90 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $430.20. The company had a trading volume of 3,013,838 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,872,796. The firm has a market capitalization of $204.84 billion, a PE ratio of 32.52, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.93. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $460.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $455.61. Linde plc has a one year low of $396.07 and a one year high of $487.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.89 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $8.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.39 billion. Linde had a net margin of 19.33% and a return on equity of 18.16%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.63 EPS. Analysts forecast that Linde plc will post 15.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $5.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.29%. Linde's dividend payout ratio is 42.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Linde

In related news, Director Paula Rosput Reynolds acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $441.34 per share, for a total transaction of $44,134.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 233 shares of the company's stock, valued at $102,832.22. The trade was a 75.19 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,385 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.73, for a total transaction of $2,020,301.05. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 22,776 shares in the company, valued at $10,493,586.48. The trade was a 16.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Erste Group Bank restated a "hold" rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of Linde from $510.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on Linde from $520.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $490.75.

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.