Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Sells 53,574 Shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank trimmed its holdings in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 11.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 413,441 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 53,574 shares during the quarter. Linde accounts for approximately 0.5% of Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Linde were worth $173,095,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in Linde by 20.9% in the 4th quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,127 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $891,000 after acquiring an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Argentarii LLC bought a new position in shares of Linde in the fourth quarter worth approximately $242,000. Personal CFO Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of Linde by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 3,116 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,305,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its holdings in Linde by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 5,023 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,103,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Naviter Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Linde by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Naviter Wealth LLC now owns 7,013 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,936,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. 82.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Linde Stock Performance

Linde stock opened at $468.77 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $444.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $455.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The company has a market cap of $221.69 billion, a PE ratio of 34.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.94. Linde plc has a twelve month low of $410.69 and a twelve month high of $487.49.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.93 by $0.04. Linde had a return on equity of 18.71% and a net margin of 19.89%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Linde plc will post 16.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Linde Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Linde’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.39. Linde’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on LIN. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Linde from $490.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of Linde from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target 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 assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $501.82.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Linde news, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,218 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $434.35, for a total transaction of $963,388.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 25,926 shares in the company, valued at $11,260,958.10. The trade was a 7.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Paula Rosput Reynolds bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $441.34 per share, for a total transaction of $44,134.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 233 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,832.22. The trade was a 75.19 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 14,377 shares of company stock valued at $6,567,231 over the last three months. 0.60% of the stock is 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.