Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) is included among the 16 Best Dividend Stocks with Rising Payouts.
On February 10, BMO Capital analyst John McNulty slightly raised his price recommendation on Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) to $507 from $501. The analyst maintained an Outperform rating on the shares. He noted that the company is heading into 2026 with a stronger project backlog and continued pricing strength. These factors should help balance ongoing macroeconomic weakness and a slower-than-expected ramp in the OCI and Woodside project, according to his research note.
During Linde’s Q4 2025 earnings call, CEO Sanjiv Lamba described the economic environment as uneven. He said investment in AI and digital infrastructure remained strong and continued to drive growth. At the same time, traditional industrial sectors such as manufacturing, metals, chemicals, and energy were still pulling back. Even with those challenges, he indicated that Linde delivered solid results in areas that matter most to shareholders. The company reported record annual EPS, operating cash flow, and operating margins. It also generated a 24.2% return on capital and returned more than $7 billion to shareholders.
Lamba also shared that Linde’s project backlog reached a record $10 billion. He noted that this figure excludes more than $0.5 billion in additional investments related to rocket propellant projects for contracted space launch customers. He said the company expects continued investment in this area as it builds out its network to support rising demand tied to the space industry.
Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) is an industrial gases and engineering company based in the United Kingdom. It serves a wide range of industries, including chemicals and energy, food and beverage, electronics, healthcare, manufacturing, metals, and mining.
While we acknowledge the potential of LIN to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than LIN and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
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