Linde (LIN) AI Stock Analysis

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Linde

(NASDAQ:LIN)

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Rating:78Outperform

Price Target:$574.00▲(9.01% Upside)

Action:reiterated

Date:10/30/26

The score is driven primarily by strong financial quality (high margins, improved earnings, solid balance sheet) and supportive technical momentum (price above major moving averages with positive MACD). These positives are tempered by premium valuation (P/E 33.28 and modest yield) and a cautious earnings outlook reflecting restructuring/Lincare headwinds and limited assumed macro improvement.

Positive Factors

Recurring Contracted RevenueLinde’s on-site model anchors revenue in long-duration contracts with major industrial customers, while dedicated plants and pipelines increase switching costs. This combination supports recurring demand, improves planning visibility, and helps protect the company’s competitive position across economic cycles.

Negative Factors

Weak Free-Cash-Flow ConversionAlthough Linde generates substantial operating cash flow, the gap between net income and free cash flow indicates that more earnings are being absorbed by capital spending or working capital. Persistently lower conversion could constrain reinvestment flexibility and reduce cash available for distributions.

Linde Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Revenue by SegmentBreaks down revenue across different business units, revealing which segments are performing well and contributing most to the company’s top line.

Chart Insights

Regional revenues — notably Americas and APAC — have moved from steady to accelerating, while Engineering and Other have rebounded, reflecting increased equipment sales and project startups that lift near‑term top line but tend to dilute margins. Management’s record $8.1B backlog and >20 project starts support continued multi‑year volume growth (electronics-led), yet helium/logistics costs, hardgoods mix and Lincare margin pressure mean profitability improvement will lag revenue as projects ramp over several quarters.

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The Fly

Linde (LIN) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)

Market Cap: $241.73B
Dividend Yield: 1.20%
Average Volume (3M): 2.06M
Price to Earnings (P/E): 34.8
Beta (1Y): 0.24
Revenue Growth: 8.16%
EPS Growth: 0.67%
Country: US
Employees: 64,512
Sector: Basic Materials
Sector Strength: 61
Industry: Chemicals - Specialty

Linde Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

Linde plc functions as a global industrial gas and engineering powerhouse, extending its operations throughout North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company's comprehensive product line features atmospher...

How the Company Makes Money

Linde makes money primarily by producing and selling industrial gases and related services through three main supply modes, each with distinct economics: 1) On-site (long-term supply contracts): Linde builds, owns, and operates gas production facilit...

Linde Earnings Call Summary

Earnings Call Date:Oct 29, 2026(Q3-2026)|% Change Since:3.62%|Next Earnings Date:Feb 11, 2027

Earnings Call SentimentPositive

The call was positive but cautious. Linde delivered quarterly records, broad-based sales and pricing growth, strong cash flow, a substantial project backlog and continued momentum in electronics and selected industrial markets. However, management highlighted meaningful challenges from Lincare, restructuring, margin pressure, European industrial weakness, uneven China demand, energy-cost recovery lags and a guarded fourth-quarter outlook. The number and significance of the stated operating strengths outweighed the challenges, while management emphasized that further improvement work remains.

Positive Updates

Quarterly Records in Sales, Operating Profit and EPS

Sales reached $9.4 billion, operating profit was $2.8 billion and EPS was $4.59, all quarterly records. Sales increased 9% year over year, operating profit grew 8% and EPS grew 9%, or 8% excluding currency.

Negative Updates

Significant Restructuring Charge and Lincare Underperformance

Linde recorded a $425 million restructuring charge, with roughly half related to severance, particularly in lower-growth regions, and the balance primarily related to portfolio and asset actions, mostly in the U.S. home care business, Lincare. Management said Lincare has weighed on overall results, is being restructured and remains under strategic evaluation.

Company Guidance

For the fourth quarter, Linde is guiding an EPS range of $4.40 to $4.50, or 5% to 7% growth, with no prior year currency impact assumed, a 1% headwind sequentially, and no economic improvement assumed, including Lincare; the full year guide is $17.82 to $17.92, with the full year FX benefit increased from a strong 1% last quarter to a weak 2% this quarter. Sale of gas backlog is expected to remain pretty close to $8 billion, with projects that might lead up to around $1 billion starting up for the rest of this quarter, while sale of plant backlog is just under $3 billion and expected to continue to grow over the course of next year. Severance paybacks tend to be in the 1- to 2-year range, with this charge probably closer to the higher 2-year end, full benefits expected in the second half of next year on a full run rate basis, and full benefits within 3 to 4 quarters of the action itself. Electronics growth is expected to remain in the double-digit rate going forward, supported by about $2 billion of backlog projects under execution over the next 2, 3 years.

Linde Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Strong overall fundamentals: robust profitability (~20% operating margin, ~19% net margin) and materially higher earnings versus 2021–2022 support the score. Balance sheet leverage is moderate but improving (debt reduced vs. 2025; D/E ~0.64). The main constraint is weaker cash conversion, with free cash flow only ~47% of net income TTM, indicating higher capex/working-capital drag versus prior years.

Income Statement

86Very Positive

Balance Sheet

78Positive

Cash Flow

72Positive

Financial statement breakdown
Breakdown	TTM	Dec 2025	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue	36.24B	33.99B	33.01B	32.85B	33.36B	30.79B
Gross Profit	13.52B	12.83B	12.08B	11.55B	9.71B	8.62B
EBITDA	13.29B	13.02B	12.38B	11.92B	10.66B	9.92B
Net Income	7.01B	6.90B	6.57B	6.20B	4.15B	3.83B
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	88.08B	86.82B	80.15B	80.81B	79.66B	81.61B
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	3.95B	5.06B	4.85B	4.66B	5.44B	2.82B
Total Debt	26.70B	26.99B	22.61B	20.32B	18.79B	15.22B
Total Liabilities	47.08B	47.08B	40.66B	39.72B	38.27B	36.16B
Stockholders Equity	39.42B	38.24B	38.09B	39.72B	40.03B	44.03B
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	5.08B	5.09B	4.93B	5.52B	5.69B	6.64B
Operating Cash Flow	10.71B	10.35B	9.42B	9.30B	8.86B	9.72B
Investing Cash Flow	-5.83B	-5.72B	-4.64B	-4.67B	-3.09B	-3.01B
Financing Cash Flow	-5.46B	-4.55B	-4.36B	-5.40B	-3.09B	-7.59B

Linde Technical Analysis

Technical Analysis SentimentPositive

Last Price526.55

Price Trends

50DMA487.76Positive

100DMA495.14Positive

200DMA493.42Positive

Market Momentum

MACD9.26Negative

RSI64.03Neutral

STOCH59.28Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For LIN, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 526.55 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 509.29, above the 50-day MA of 487.76, and above the 200-day MA of 493.42, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 9.26 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 64.03 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 59.28 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for LIN.

Linde Risk Analysis

Linde disclosed 17 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Linde reported the most risks in the "Macro & Political" category.

Macro & Political - Risks related to catastrophic events or geopolitical conditions that may disrupt the company’s business

Latest Risks Added

0 New Risks

Linde Peers Comparison

Overall Rating

UnderperformOutperform

Sector (61)

Financial Indicators

LIN against its peers
Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
LIN	78Outperform	$239.54B	34.82	18.05%	1.20%	8.16%	0.67%
ECL	72Outperform	$85.83B	41.52	20.70%	0.95%	9.33%	5.71%
EMN	65Neutral	$7.49B	11.73	10.63%	5.05%	0.40%	-6.58%
Sector *	61Neutral	$10.43B	7.12	-0.05%	2.87%	2.86%	-36.73%
APD	57Neutral	$69.53B	131.87	3.43%	2.29%	7.91%	―
LYB	55Neutral	$19.59B	15.72	12.39%	5.50%	-1.80%	―
CC	48Neutral	$2.03B	-12.36	-117.69%	2.55%	-0.51%	49.73%

* Basic Materials Sector Average

Performance Comparison

LIN and its peers over the selected period
Ticker	Company Name	Price	Change	% Change
LIN	Linde Plc	526.55	103.65	24.51%
APD	Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.	315.18	58.96	23.01%
EMN	Eastman Chemical Company	66.51	6.78	11.35%
ECL	Ecolab	307.86	48.71	18.80%
LYB	Lyondellbasell Industries	62.58	19.76	46.14%
CC	Chemours Company	13.72	1.71	14.25%

Linde Corporate Events

Business Operations and StrategyExecutive/Board ChangesShareholder Meetings

Linde Shareholders Endorse Governance Decisions at 2026 AGM

Positive

Jul 30, 2026

At Linde plc’s Annual General Meeting held on July 28, 2026, shareholders representing 85.65% of outstanding shares voted to elect nine directors to serve until the 2027 AGM, with all nominees receiving strong majority support. Shareholders also rati...

Glossary

BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.

HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.

SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.

Disclaimer

This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.

Date of analysis: Oct 30, 2026

Linde AI Stock Analysis