Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA Sells 210 Shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA cut its position in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 19.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 867 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 210 shares during the quarter. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA’s holdings in Linde were worth $381,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Linde during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its stake in shares of Linde by 144.8% during the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 71 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Linde during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Linde during the third quarter worth $43,000. Finally, Kozak & Associates Inc. grew its stake in shares of Linde by 38.6% in the fourth quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 97 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. 82.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Linde Price Performance

Linde stock opened at $468.77 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $221.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.44, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.94. Linde plc has a 52-week low of $410.69 and a 52-week high of $487.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $444.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $455.31.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.97 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, equities analysts predict that Linde plc will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Linde Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This is an increase from Linde’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.39. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. Linde’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.09%.

Insider Activity at Linde

In other Linde news, Director Paula Rosput Reynolds purchased 100 shares of Linde stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $441.34 per share, with a total value of $44,134.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 233 shares in the company, valued at $102,832.22. This trade represents a 75.19 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,477 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.74, for a total transaction of $1,163,545.98. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $610,662. The trade was a 65.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 14,377 shares of company stock valued at $6,567,231 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LIN. Citigroup cut their target price on Linde from $490.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded Linde from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $480.00 to $515.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.