Linde plc (NYSE:LIN) Shares Sold by Prio Wealth Limited Partnership

Prio Wealth Limited Partnership lessened its stake in shares of Linde plc (NYSE:LIN) by 2.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,327 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 250 shares during the period. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership’s holdings in Linde were worth $3,315,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of LIN. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. lifted its holdings in shares of Linde by 4.8% during the first quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. now owns 8,924 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,172,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Linde by 4.5% during the first quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 1,045 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $371,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Curbstone Financial Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Linde in the first quarter worth about $419,000. HRT Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Linde by 1,888.9% during the first quarter. HRT Financial LP now owns 341,589 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $121,414,000 after acquiring an additional 324,414 shares during the period. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance raised its holdings in shares of Linde by 3.6% during the first quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 20,190 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $7,176,000 after acquiring an additional 701 shares during the period. 80.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Linde Stock Performance

LIN traded down $4.17 on Tuesday, hitting $384.74. The company had a trading volume of 157,782 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,859,812. The stock has a market cap of $187.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $380.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $365.15. Linde plc has a 1-year low of $262.47 and a 1-year high of $393.67.

Linde (NYSE:LIN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The basic materials company reported $3.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $8.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.70 billion. Linde had a net margin of 17.20% and a return on equity of 16.17%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.10 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Linde plc will post 14.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 5th will be given a $1.275 dividend. This represents a $5.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 1st. Linde’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on LIN. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Linde from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Linde from $420.00 to $444.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 28th. Citigroup initiated coverage on Linde in a research report on Tuesday, June 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $430.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $420.00 price target on shares of Linde in a research report on Tuesday, August 1st. Finally, Berenberg Bank boosted their price objective on shares of Linde from $375.00 to $415.00 in a research report on Friday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $404.41.

Insider Transactions at Linde

In related news, VP Sean Durbin sold 1,966 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $373.46, for a total transaction of $734,222.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 8,149 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,043,325.54. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Stephen F. Angel sold 39,695 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $391.62, for a total transaction of $15,545,355.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 369,611 shares in the company, valued at approximately $144,747,059.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Sean Durbin sold 1,966 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $373.46, for a total transaction of $734,222.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 8,149 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,043,325.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Linde Profile

Linde plc operates as an industrial gas company in North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia 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.