Ascent Capital Management LLC Purchases New Shares in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Ascent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 518 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $217,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. one8zero8 LLC purchased a new position in shares of Linde in the 4th quarter worth approximately $560,000. Choate Investment Advisors lifted its position in Linde by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 29,510 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $12,358,000 after buying an additional 5,025 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC boosted its stake in Linde by 13.8% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 6,559 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,746,000 after buying an additional 793 shares during the period. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC increased its position in Linde by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 3,022 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,265,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Miller Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Linde by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Brown Miller Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,373 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,087,000 after acquiring an additional 625 shares during the period. 82.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Linde Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LIN opened at $455.50 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $448.66 and its 200 day moving average is $454.91. The stock has a market cap of $215.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.47, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.93 by $0.04. Linde had a return on equity of 18.71% and a net margin of 19.89%. Sell-side analysts predict that Linde plc will post 16.54 EPS for the current year.

Linde Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is an increase from Linde’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.39. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.32%. Linde’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.09%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,218 shares of the firm’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 sale, the vice president now owns 25,926 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,260,958.10. This trade represents a 7.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Robert L. Wood sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $456.26, for a total transaction of $1,323,154.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,013 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,393,571.38. This represents a 17.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 14,377 shares of company stock worth $6,567,231. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on LIN shares. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of 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 reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded Linde from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $480.00 to $515.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Linde currently 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.