500 Shares in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) Purchased by Madison Park Capital Advisors LLC

Madison Park Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 500 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LIN. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its holdings in Linde by 144.8% during the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 71 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. bought a new position in Linde during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in Linde during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Linde during the third quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new position in Linde during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. 82.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Linde Trading Up 1.5 %

NASDAQ:LIN opened at $442.46 on Wednesday. Linde plc has a twelve month low of $396.07 and a twelve month high of $487.49. The company has a market cap of $210.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.94. 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 business has a 50 day moving average price of $436.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $453.18.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.94 earnings per share (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 prior year, the business posted $3.63 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Linde plc will post 15.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were paid a $1.39 dividend. This represents a $5.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 3rd. Linde’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Mizuho raised their target price on Linde from $520.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Linde from $510.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen upgraded Linde from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $480.00 to $515.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $495.75.

Insider Activity at Linde

In related news, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,218 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 owns 25,926 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,260,958.10. This represents a 7.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Paula Rosput Reynolds acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $441.34 per share, for a total transaction of $44,134.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 233 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,832.22. This trade represents a 75.19 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.