USS Investment Management Ltd Sells 17,726 Shares of Linde PLC $LIN

USS Investment Management Ltd trimmed its stake in shares of Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) by 18.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 77,875 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 17,726 shares during the quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Linde were worth $38,598,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in LIN. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Linde during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new position in Linde in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Saranac Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Linde during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Triumph Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of Linde by 69.2% during the fourth quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 66 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strengthening Families & Communities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Linde by 134.5% during the fourth quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 68 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.80% of the company’s stock.

Linde Trading Up 1.5%

NASDAQ:LIN opened at $518.94 on Wednesday. Linde PLC has a 52 week low of $387.78 and a 52 week high of $527.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.83. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $508.73 and its 200-day moving average is $481.55. The firm has a market cap of $239.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.46, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.72.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $4.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.27 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $8.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.60 billion. Linde had a net margin of 20.44% and a return on equity of 19.80%. Linde’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.95 earnings per share. Linde has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.600-17.900 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 4.400-4.500 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Linde PLC will post 17.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Linde Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 4th were given a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 4th. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Linde’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on LIN. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $560.00 price objective on shares of Linde in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Linde from $525.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Linde in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Linde from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price target on shares of Linde in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $543.27.

Linde Company Profile

Linde (NASDAQ: LIN) is a multinational industrial gases and engineering company that supplies gases, related technologies and services to a wide range of industries. The company traces its current form to the 2018 combination of Germany’s Linde AG and U.S.-based Praxair, creating one of the largest global providers of industrial, specialty and medical gases. Linde’s business model centers on production, processing and distribution of gases as well as the design and construction of the plants and equipment needed to produce them.

Core products and services include atmospheric and process gases such as oxygen, nitrogen and argon; hydrogen and helium; carbon dioxide; and a portfolio of higher‑value specialty and electronic gases.