Citigroup Cuts Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) Price Target to $480.00

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) had its target price trimmed by Citigroup from $490.00 to $480.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Mizuho increased their target price on Linde from $520.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Linde from $510.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Linde presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $490.75.

Linde Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LIN opened at $424.31 on Wednesday. Linde has a 12-month low of $396.07 and a 12-month high of $487.49. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $457.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $455.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market cap of $202.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.22, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.93.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $3.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.89 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $8.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.39 billion. Linde had a net margin of 19.33% and a return on equity of 18.16%. Linde’s revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.63 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Linde will post 15.48 EPS for the current year.

Linde Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were given a $1.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $5.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. Linde’s payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,385 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.73, for a total value of $2,020,301.05. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 22,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,493,586.48. The trade was a 16.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Paula Rosput Reynolds purchased 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $441.34 per share, with a total value of $44,134.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 233 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,832.22. The trade was a 75.19 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Linde

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LIN. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC grew its position in Linde by 13.9% in the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 515 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its holdings in Linde by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 1,439 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $632,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in Linde by 14.2% in the 2nd quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,777 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,219,000 after acquiring an additional 346 shares during the period. Everhart Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Linde by 16.5% during the 2nd quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,748 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $767,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. boosted its position in Linde by 96.8% during the 2nd quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. now owns 46,915 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $20,587,000 after acquiring an additional 23,075 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.80% of the company’s stock.

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.