Snowden Capital Advisors LLC Grows Position in Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Snowden Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,448 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Linde were worth $2,700,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Linde in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its position in Linde by 1,160.0% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 63 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in Linde in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Linde in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Linde in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. 82.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Linde Price Performance

Shares of LIN opened at $457.77 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $451.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $447.77. Linde plc has a fifty-two week low of $408.65 and a fifty-two week high of $487.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $215.48 billion, a PE ratio of 33.63, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.92 by $0.03. Linde had a net margin of 19.89% and a return on equity of 18.71%. The firm had revenue of $8.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.75 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Linde plc will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 4th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. Linde’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on LIN shares. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Linde to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Argus raised shares of Linde to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Linde currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $503.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Juergen Nowicki sold 6,782 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $459.62, for a total transaction of $3,117,142.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,765 shares in the company, valued at $6,786,289.30. The trade was a 31.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,477 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $610,662. This trade represents a 65.58% 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 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.