Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) Shares Purchased by Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC

Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 528 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 47 shares during the quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Linde were worth $221,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kozak & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Linde during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Linde in the third quarter worth $43,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its position in shares of Linde by 133.3% in the 2nd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 98 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. raised its stake in Linde by 1,733.3% during the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 110 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. 82.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,218 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $434.35, for a total transaction of $963,388.30. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 25,926 shares in the company, valued at $11,260,958.10. The trade was a 7.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,385 shares of Linde stock in a transaction 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 owns 22,776 shares in the company, valued at $10,493,586.48. This represents a 16.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Linde Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LIN traded down $5.06 during trading on Friday, reaching $414.95. 1,601,232 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,291,532. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Linde plc has a 1-year low of $396.07 and a 1-year high of $487.49. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $440.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $453.31. The firm has a market cap of $197.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.94.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.89 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $8.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.39 billion. Linde had a net margin of 19.33% and a return on equity of 18.16%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.63 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Linde plc will post 15.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were issued a dividend of $1.39 per share. This represents a $5.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 3rd. Linde’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Mizuho lifted their target price on Linde from $520.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Linde from $490.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Linde from $510.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Linde presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $490.75.

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.