Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) Shares Sold by Camden National Bank

Camden National Bank trimmed its holdings in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 2.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 33,693 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 944 shares during the period. Linde accounts for about 2.3% of Camden National Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Camden National Bank’s holdings in Linde were worth $16,067,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LIN. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in Linde during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Linde in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Kozak & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Linde in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in Linde in the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Linde in the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. 82.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Linde Stock Down 0.1 %

Linde stock opened at $454.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.96. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $468.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $453.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $216.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.94. Linde plc has a one year low of $396.07 and a one year high of $487.49.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last posted 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 analyst estimates 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.63 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Linde plc will post 15.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Linde Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.39 per share. This represents a $5.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 3rd. Linde’s payout ratio is 42.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP John Panikar sold 10,025 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $462.75, for a total value of $4,639,068.75. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 17,584 shares in the company, valued at $8,136,996. The trade was a 36.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a research report on Tuesday. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Linde from $495.00 to $516.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Linde from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Linde from $510.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $490.75.

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.