Blue Trust Inc. Buys 1,896 Shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 21.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,539 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 1,896 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Linde were worth $4,412,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of LIN. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its holdings in shares of Linde by 144.8% during the 4th 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 period. Kozak & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Linde during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Linde during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Linde during the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Linde during the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. Institutional investors own 82.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,218 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $434.35, for a total transaction of $963,388.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 25,926 shares in the company, valued at $11,260,958.10. This represents a 7.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,385 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.73, for a total transaction of $2,020,301.05. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 22,776 shares in the company, valued at $10,493,586.48. The trade was a 16.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Linde Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LIN opened at $439.25 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $435.45 and a 200-day moving average of $453.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $209.15 billion, a PE ratio of 33.35, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Linde plc has a 12 month low of $396.07 and a 12 month high of $487.49.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.89 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $8.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.39 billion. Linde had a net margin of 19.33% and a return on equity of 18.16%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.63 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Linde plc will post 15.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LIN has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted 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 lifted their price objective on shares of Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Linde from $490.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of Linde from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $480.00 to $515.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $501.82.

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.