Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC Reduces Holdings in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC lessened its holdings in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 258,718 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 4,657 shares during the quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC’s holdings in Linde were worth $123,372,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of LIN. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Linde during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Linde in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Kozak & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Linde during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Linde during the second quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Linde in the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 82.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP John Panikar sold 10,025 shares of Linde stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $462.75, for a total transaction of $4,639,068.75. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 17,584 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,136,996. The trade was a 36.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Linde Stock Performance

Shares of LIN stock opened at $460.99 on Monday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $467.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $454.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Linde plc has a 52 week low of $396.07 and a 52 week high of $487.49. The company has a market cap of $219.50 billion, a PE ratio of 35.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.94.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. Linde had a return on equity of 18.16% and a net margin of 19.33%. The company had revenue of $8.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.39 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.63 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Linde plc will post 15.48 EPS for the current year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be given a $1.39 dividend. This represents a $5.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 3rd. Linde’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Mizuho lifted their price objective 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 increased their target price on 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 lifted their price target on Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Linde from $495.00 to $516.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.