Blue Trust Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Blue Trust Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 19.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,925 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,718 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Linde were worth $2,899,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of LIN. Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Linde during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Linde during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Kozak & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Linde during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Linde in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LIN has been the topic of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen raised shares of Linde from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $480.00 to $515.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Linde from $490.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Linde from $520.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $501.82.

Insider Transactions at Linde

In related news, Director Robert L. Wood sold 2,900 shares of Linde stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.26, for a total value of $1,323,154.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 14,013 shares in the company, valued at $6,393,571.38. This trade represents a 17.15 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paula Rosput Reynolds acquired 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $441.34 per share, for a total transaction of $44,134.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 233 shares in the company, valued at $102,832.22. The trade was a 75.19 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 9,503 shares of company stock worth $4,306,843. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Linde Price Performance

Shares of LIN stock opened at $457.00 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $217.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Linde plc has a 1-year low of $410.69 and a 1-year high of $487.49. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $434.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $453.94.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.97 earnings per share 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, research analysts anticipate that Linde plc will post 16.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.