Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) Shares Sold by Evoke Wealth LLC

Evoke Wealth LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,863 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,001 shares during the period. Evoke Wealth LLC’s holdings in Linde were worth $7,060,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Linde in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Linde by 1,160.0% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 63 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Linde during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its holdings in shares of Linde by 144.8% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 71 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Linde in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on LIN shares. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Linde from $490.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. TD Cowen raised shares of Linde from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $480.00 to $515.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Linde presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $501.82.

Linde Price Performance

LIN opened at $460.31 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $217.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.82, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $449.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $454.70. Linde plc has a 12-month low of $410.69 and a 12-month high of $487.49.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.93 by $0.04. Linde had a net margin of 19.89% and a return on equity of 18.71%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Linde plc will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Linde Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.30%. This is a positive change from Linde’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.39. Linde’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.09%.

Insider Activity at Linde

In related news, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,477 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $469.74, for a total value of $1,163,545.98. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $610,662. This trade represents a 65.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Juergen Nowicki sold 6,782 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 14,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,786,289.30. This trade represents a 31.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 12,159 shares of company stock worth $5,603,843. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

About Linde

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.