Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Linde PLC (NASDAQ:LIN) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $513.5556.

LIN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Linde in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Mizuho set a $525.00 price objective on shares of Linde in a research report on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and set a $516.00 target price on shares of Linde in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $455.00 target price on shares of Linde in a research note on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $530.00 price target on shares of Linde in a research note on Friday.

Linde Trading Down 2.5%

Shares of Linde stock opened at $448.24 on Friday. Linde has a 1 year low of $387.78 and a 1 year high of $486.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $431.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $447.83. The company has a market capitalization of $209.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.84.

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

Institutional Trading of Linde

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Markel Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Linde by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 186,600 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $87,549,000 after purchasing an additional 5,600 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service boosted its holdings in Linde by 2.6% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 967,516 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $459,570,000 after purchasing an additional 24,624 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in Linde by 12.3% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 205,318 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $97,526,000 after buying an additional 22,489 shares during the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp raised its holdings in Linde by 27.2% during the second quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 417,001 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $195,649,000 after buying an additional 89,129 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR raised its holdings in Linde by 14.0% during the third quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR now owns 44,981 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $21,366,000 after buying an additional 5,526 shares in the last quarter. 82.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Linde

Here are the key news stories impacting Linde this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat estimates: adjusted EPS $4.20 (vs. $4.18 consensus) and revenue $8.76B (+6% YoY), showing margin resilience and underlying demand. Businesswire: Linde Reports Full-Year and Fourth-Quarter 2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Full-year operating profit reported at $8.9B, indicating solid profitability for 2025. Gasworld: Linde reports full year operating profit of $8.9bn
• Positive Sentiment: Company cites record backlog and restructuring initiatives as drivers of steady growth and the 2026 outlook (EPS target $17.40–$17.90). MSN: Linde sees another year of steady growth as Q4 results beat forecasts
• Neutral Sentiment: Management set FY2026 EPS guidance at $17.40–$17.90 and Q1 at $4.20–$4.30 — roughly in line with consensus but tight to the low side of estimates, leaving little upside surprise potential. Linde FY2026 guidance (slide deck)
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan reaffirmed a “neutral” rating with a $455 price target (only modest upside from current levels), signaling limited near-term analyst-driven buy pressure. Benzinga: JPMorgan reaffirms neutral on Linde
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: shares fell after guidance was viewed as disappointing relative to expectations despite the earnings beat; coverage and headlines highlighted the guidance miss. Investing.com: Linde shares fall over 2% as 2026 guidance disappoints
• Negative Sentiment: Operational/headcount action: Linde announced engineering job cuts as it addresses supply-chain challenges — short-term disruption and execution risk that can worry investors. Gasworld: Linde cuts jobs in engineering

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.