US · Materials
LIN stock analysis: filings, institutional holders, and operating trends
Linde plc operates in the Industrial Gases industry within the Materials sector and is a constituent of the S&P 500. This page connects filing evidence with ownership, insider activity, forecasts, ETFs, and peer context so each dataset can be checked against the others.
Deterministic, source-linked commentary
The current research read on LIN
LIN's current operating picture begins with the latest company report. 10-Q covers CY2026Q1. quarterly revenue was $8.8B; year-over-year growth was 8.2%; operating margin was 27.8%; trailing free cash flow was $3.6B. Read together, these figures test whether scale is translating into profit and cash. Verify periods and company footnotes in the original SEC EDGAR filing.
The valuation range should move when LIN's operating assumptions move. The forecast scenarios were updated 2026-05-21. Revenue growth, margins, cash generation, and risk assumptions must be checked against each new filing.
No single dataset settles the LIN research case. Use institutional ownership, insider filings, forecast scenarios alongside the filing. Company facts can update before 13F positions, so align every source date and report period before treating a difference as a change in fundamentals.
Business model
Company snapshot
Linde plc operates in the Industrial Gases industry within the Materials sector and is a constituent of the S&P 500. The latest standardized snapshot records $34B of trailing revenue, $7.23B of net income, and $3.59B of free cash flow. These figures describe the reported company, while valuation and price require a separate market-data timestamp.
Operating lines
A named product, service, or operating exposure identified in the company description.
A named product, service, or operating exposure identified in the company description.
Geographic revenue mix
The current standardized filing dataset does not extract a comparable geographic revenue table for every issuer. Review the latest 10-K segment note for domestic and international mix, concentration, foreign-exchange sensitivity, and country-specific regulation.
10-Q · 2026-05-01
What the latest filing shows
Revenue for the latest standardized quarter was $8.78B, while diluted EPS was 3.98. Revenue changed 8.2% from the comparable period. Gross margin was N/A and operating margin was 27.8%. Margin direction matters because it shows whether growth is translating into operating leverage or requiring more cost to support.
Open original SEC filingCY2026Q1
Earnings analysis
| Period | Revenue | Net income | EPS | Operating margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CY2026Q1 | $8.78B | $1.86B | 3.98 | 27.8% |
| TTM | $34B | $7.23B | 15.31 | 27.5% |
| CY2025 | $33.99B | $6.9B | See filing | 26.3% |
The standardized data shows revenue growth of 8.2%, an operating margin of 27.5%, and a net margin of 21.2%. Without a dedicated earnings article, the original filing remains the primary source for management guidance and expectation comparisons.
Scenario analysis
Forecast range
LIN is a NASDAQ-100 stock with a checked price of 506.63, market cap of 234.24B, and revenue of 34.66B. A practical 2026 scenario map is $380-456 in a bear case, $466-583 in a base case, and $598-735 in a bull case. The forecast depends on industrial demand, power infrastructure, logistics, and energy cycle.
Forecast assumptions
- Revenue growth must be checked against the latest filing and management guidance.
- Current reported operating margin is 27.5%.
- TTM free-cash-flow margin is 10.5%.
- Discount rates and valuation multiples should move when risk-free rates, business risk, or estimate confidence changes.
This is not a buy or sell recommendation. Forecasts are conditional ranges whose assumptions can fail.
Open forecast methodology and scenariosMaterials
Peer comparison
| Company | TTM revenue | Revenue growth | Operating margin | Tracked holders |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LINLinde plc | $34B | 8.2% | 27.5% | 0 |
| NUENucor | $34.3B | 21.3% | N/A | 1 |
| CRHCRH plc | $35.4B | 9.1% | 11.3% | 0 |
| SWSmurfit Westrock | $31.31B | 0.7% | 5.1% | 0 |
| LYBLyondellBasell | $30.26B | -6.3% | -0.3% | 0 |
| DOWDow Inc. | $40.3B | -6.1% | N/A | 0 |
| FCXFreeport-McMoRan | $26.17B | 12.2% | 30% | 0 |
LIN's 8.2% revenue growth and 27.5% operating margin should be read against peers using the same reporting definitions. A higher margin may reflect pricing power or business mix, while a lower margin can reflect investment, cyclicality, or weaker economics.
Fund ownership
ETF exposure
LIN appears among the disclosed top holdings of 1 tracked ETFs shown below. ETF weights change with price movement, rebalancing, creations, redemptions, and issuer methodology.
| ETF | LIN weight | AUM | Holdings date |
|---|---|---|---|
| XLBState Street Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF | 14.79% | $7.25B | May 18, 2026 |
10-K · 2026-02-25
Key risk factors disclosed in the latest 10-K
The categories below are a deterministic research checklist anchored to Linde plc's industry and latest annual filing. They summarize areas investors should locate in Item 1A; they do not replace the company's exact legal disclosure.
- Demand and product-cycle risk: Industrial Gases can experience changing customer demand, replacement cycles, and competitive product launches that affect revenue timing.
- Competition and execution: Market share depends on product quality, pricing, distribution, innovation, and management's ability to convert investment into durable customer demand.
- Supply chain and counterparties: Supplier concentration, logistics disruption, component availability, and customer concentration can affect delivery schedules, costs, and working capital.
- Regulation and litigation: Antitrust, privacy, securities, labor, tax, environmental, and industry-specific rules may change costs or restrict products and business practices.
- Financial and market risk: Foreign exchange, interest rates, credit conditions, investment values, and capital-allocation decisions can affect reported earnings and valuation.
Shareholder returns
Dividend and buyback history
Dividend
Linde plc reported $2.83B of dividends paid over the trailing period and $741M in the latest standardized quarter. These are company cash outflows, not a per-share forward yield.
Share buybacks
The standardized snapshot does not currently expose a reliable repurchase authorization and share-count bridge for every issuer. Compare diluted shares outstanding across filings and read the capital-return note before concluding that buybacks reduced the share base.
Research workflow
Common research questions about LIN
Who is the largest tracked institutional holder of LIN?
The current tracked-manager sample does not identify an active LIN holder. The LIN ownership page will reflect a matching position when one enters the filing dataset.
What does recent insider activity show for LIN?
No recent Form 4 transaction appears in the current LIN window. Check the LIN Form 4 history for later company-officer or director filings.
What business does Linde plc operate?
Linde plc operates in the Industrial Gases industry within the Materials sector and is a constituent of the S&P 500. The LIN company snapshot connects that business description with reported revenue, profit, and cash flow.
How does LIN compare with a close operating peer?
LIN's revenue growth is 8.2% and its operating margin is 27.5%. Compare those figures with NUE research using the same definitions.
What do the latest financials say about LIN?
10-Q reports $34.0B of trailing revenue, with revenue growth of 8.2% and an operating margin of 27.5%. The supporting period and source are listed in the LIN filing section.
How strong is LIN's cash return profile?
Linde plc reported $2.8B of trailing dividends paid alongside $3.6B of free cash flow. The LIN capital-return section separates company cash outflows from a forward per-share yield.
Which assumptions matter most for the LIN outlook?
The LIN range depends on revenue growth, operating margin, cash conversion, and the risk assumptions in each new filing. Recheck them in the LIN forecast section.
Primary and reference data
Sources and methodology
- Filings: SEC EDGAR CompanyFacts, 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, Form 4, 13F-HR.
- Fundamentals: SEC EDGAR CompanyFacts; market references may use yfinance and Finnhub where explicitly available.
- ETF: Issuer disclosures and the locally dated ETF holdings snapshot.
Methodology: How SnowballHare parses and validates data.
Editorial standards: How research is published.
Disclaimer: Informational only; not investment, legal, or tax advice. Cross-check material facts against original filings before acting.
Reference notes
Data notes
Reporting dates
Use filing dates, report periods, and source links together for LIN. A company filing, a 13F disclosure, a Form 4 transaction, and an earnings release can describe different time windows, so the date beside each row matters before comparing signals.
Ownership context
13F rows are delayed public long-equity snapshots from a selected manager universe. They are useful for seeing which tracked institutions reported exposure, but they do not show every hedge, short position, cash balance, or trade made after the quarter ended.
Insider transactions
Form 4 activity should be read by transaction type, role, value, and remaining ownership. Open-market purchases and sales are different from grants, option exercises, gifts, or tax withholding, and the original SEC filing is still the controlling document.
Earnings and forecasts
Earnings pages and forecast pages are linked when a supported article exists. Treat those pages as context for reported numbers, guidance, margins, and scenario assumptions, then return to the table data when you need the underlying source date or filing trail.