Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) Shares Sold by USS Investment Management Ltd

USS Investment Management Ltd cut its holdings in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 108,528 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 4,948 shares during the period. USS Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Linde were worth $45,433,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Linde in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its position in Linde by 1,160.0% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 63 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Linde during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Linde during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC grew its position in Linde by 34.9% during the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 85 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. 82.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Linde to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Argus upgraded Linde to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $503.11.

Linde Stock Up 0.6%

LIN stock opened at $460.33 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $216.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.00. Linde plc has a 52 week low of $408.65 and a 52 week high of $487.49. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $451.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $447.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.92 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $8.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.24 billion. Linde had a return on equity of 18.71% and a net margin of 19.89%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.75 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Linde plc will post 16.54 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, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be given a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 4th. Linde’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.57%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Juergen Nowicki sold 6,782 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $6,786,289.30. This represents a 31.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,477 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.74, for a total value of $1,163,545.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $610,662. This trade represents a 65.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Linde 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.