Graypoint LLC Sells 132 Shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Graypoint LLC decreased its holdings in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,867 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 132 shares during the period. Graypoint LLC’s holdings in Linde were worth $1,619,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in shares of Linde by 6.7% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 79,472 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $37,898,000 after acquiring an additional 5,021 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in shares of Linde by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,145,643 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $898,188,000 after acquiring an additional 46,843 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its position in Linde by 16.8% during the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 9,604 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,580,000 after purchasing an additional 1,383 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its position in Linde by 4.4% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 54,975 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $26,215,000 after purchasing an additional 2,312 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Waverton Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in Linde by 0.9% during the third quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 196,036 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $93,457,000 after purchasing an additional 1,811 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.80% of the company’s stock.

Linde Price Performance

NASDAQ:LIN opened at $414.15 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The company has a market capitalization of $197.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.94. Linde plc has a 12 month low of $396.07 and a 12 month high of $487.49. The business’s 50-day moving average is $439.96 and its 200 day moving average is $453.11.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.89 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $8.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.39 billion. Linde had a return on equity of 18.16% and a net margin of 19.33%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.63 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Linde plc will post 15.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Linde Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were given a $1.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $5.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.34%. Linde’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Paula Rosput Reynolds acquired 100 shares of Linde stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $441.34 per share, with a total value of $44,134.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,218 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $434.35, for a total value of $963,388.30. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 25,926 shares in the company, valued at $11,260,958.10. The trade was a 7.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on LIN. Mizuho lifted their target price on Linde from $520.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Linde from $510.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Linde from $490.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $490.75.

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.