Overview

• Industrial gases firm's Q4 revenue beat analyst expectations

• Adjusted EPS for Q4 beat analyst expectations

• Company returned $2.1 bln to shareholders through dividends and stock repurchases

Outlook

• Linde expects Q1 2026 adjusted EPS of $4.20 to $4.30

• Linde forecasts full-year 2026 adjusted EPS of $17.40 to $17.90

• Company plans $5.0 bln to $5.5 bln in 2026 capital expenditures

Result Drivers

• PRICE AND VOLUME GROWTH - Linde's Q4 sales increased 6% YoY, driven by 2% price attainment and 1% volume growth from project startups

• PRODUCTIVITY INITIATIVES - Adjusted operating profit rose 4% due to productivity initiatives across all segments

• REGIONAL PERFORMANCE - Americas sales rose 8% driven by higher pricing and volumes, while EMEA saw a decline in underlying sales due to lower volumes

Key Details

Analyst Coverage

• The current average analyst rating on the shares is "buy" and the breakdown of recommendations is 23 "strong buy" or "buy", 3 "hold" and 1 "sell" or "strong sell"

• The average consensus recommendation for the commodity chemicals peer group is "buy"

• Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Linde PLC is $500.50, about 5.7% above its February 4 closing price of $473.33

• The stock recently traded at 27 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 24 three months ago

Press Release: ID:nEQ8C6V0Ta

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(This story was created using Reuters automation and AI based on LSEG and company data. It was checked and edited by a Reuters journalist prior to publication.)