Linde plc (LIN), headquartered in Woking, United Kingdom, is a leading global industrial gases and engineering company with a market capitalization of $226.9 billion. It supplies atmospheric and process gases, including oxygen, nitrogen, argon, and carbon dioxide, alongside technologies and engineering solutions that help customers improve productivity, efficiency, and sustainability.
Operating across the Americas, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Africa, Linde serves diverse industries, including healthcare, electronics, chemicals and energy, food and beverage, manufacturing, and metals and mining. Its gases support applications ranging from medical oxygen and semiconductor manufacturing to space exploration, clean hydrogen production, and carbon capture. Linde’s global production and distribution network, on-site infrastructure, and long-term customer contracts provide a competitive advantage, supporting reliable supply, strong customer relationships, and recurring revenue across varied end markets.
More Top Stocks Daily: Go behind Wall Street’s hottest headlines with Barchart’s Active Investor newsletter.
Linde is scheduled to report its third-quarter 2026 results before the market opens on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026. Wall Street expects earnings of $4.52 per share, up 7.4% from $4.21 per share in the year-ago quarter. The company has beaten analysts’ EPS estimates in each of the past four quarters. In Q2 2026, earnings rose 10% year over year (YOY) to $4.50 per share, modestly exceeding consensus expectations.
Looking further ahead, analysts project fiscal 2026 EPS of $17.86, an 8.5% increase from $16.46 in fiscal 2025. For fiscal 2027, earnings are expected to reach $19.60 per share, representing approximately 9.7% annual growth. Investors will be watching for updates on demand across Linde’s end markets, pricing, productivity initiatives, and management’s full-year outlook.
www.barchart.com LIN stock has surged 7.3% over the past 52 weeks, underperforming the S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 17% gains. However, LIN stock is trailing behind the S&P 500 Materials Sector SPDR’s (XLB) 10.8% returns during the same time frame.
www.barchart.com Linde’s shares remain in positive territory for the year but have underperformed the broader market, with investor concerns over margins and a modest earnings outlook upgrade weighing on sentiment.
The stock fell 6% on July 31 after the industrial gas giant reported its second-quarter results. Revenue rose 9.3% YOY to $9.3 billion, while adjusted EPS climbed 10%, supported by strong electronics demand. However, adjusted operating margin slipped 60 basis points to 29.5%, as inflationary costs offset pricing and productivity gains. Linde raised the lower end of its fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $17.70 from $17.60, while keeping the upper end at $17.90, offering investors little reason to raise their expectations significantly.
Still, the company’s diversified exposure to healthcare, food and beverages, and electronics provides some insulation from industrial slowdowns. Its roughly $10 billion project backlog and long record of dividend growth also support its defensive appeal, although weakness in healthcare remains an area to watch.
The consensus opinion on LIN stock is bullish, with a “Strong Buy” rating overall. Out of the 25 analysts covering the stock, 18 recommend a “Strong Buy,” two advise a “Moderate Buy,” and the remaining five suggest a “Hold” rating. The average target price for Linde stock is $547.39, indicating a potential upside of 11.1% from the current price levels.
On the date of publication, Sristi Suman Jayaswal did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.