MML Investors Services LLC Purchases 1,116 Shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

MML Investors Services LLC grew its position in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,876 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,116 shares during the quarter. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Linde were worth $19,492,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Linde Price Performance

Shares of LIN stock opened at $442.58 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market cap of $210.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.61, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.93. The business’s fifty day moving average is $464.12 and its 200 day moving average is $455.40. Linde plc has a twelve month low of $396.07 and a twelve month high of $487.49.

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

Linde Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be given a $1.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $5.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.26%. Linde’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Linde from $510.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Linde from $520.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $490.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,385 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.73, for a total value 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.