Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) Hits New 52-Week High After Dividend Announcement

Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday after the company announced a dividend. The company traded as high as $504.49 and last traded at $504.00, with a volume of 2761669 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $498.19.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th will be paid a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 11th. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from Linde’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. Linde’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on LIN shares. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Linde from $540.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $455.00 price objective on shares of Linde in a report on Friday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $530.00 price objective on shares of Linde in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Linde from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Mizuho set a $525.00 price target on Linde in a report on Friday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Linde has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $508.20.

Linde Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $449.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $448.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $235.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.54, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.84.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The basic materials company reported $4.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.18 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $8.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.64 billion. Linde had a net margin of 20.30% and a return on equity of 19.52%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.97 EPS. Linde has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 17.400-17.900 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Linde PLC will post 16.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Linde

In other Linde news, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 9,455 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $480.45, for a total value of $4,542,654.75. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 22,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,636,202.10. The trade was a 29.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Linde

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LIN. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Linde in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Linde in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Triumph Capital Management grew its stake in Linde by 69.2% in the 4th quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 66 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership raised its holdings in Linde by 195.2% during the 3rd quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 62 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Finally, KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new stake in Linde during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.80% of the company’s stock.

Linde Company Profile

Linde (NASDAQ: LIN) is a multinational industrial gases and engineering company that supplies gases, related technologies and services to a wide range of industries. The company traces its current form to the 2018 combination of Germany’s Linde AG and U.S.-based Praxair, creating one of the largest global providers of industrial, specialty and medical gases. Linde’s business model centers on production, processing and distribution of gases as well as the design and construction of the plants and equipment needed to produce them.

Core products and services include atmospheric and process gases such as oxygen, nitrogen and argon; hydrogen and helium; carbon dioxide; and a portfolio of higher‑value specialty and electronic gases.