LIN

LIN

Linde plc

Hybrid Industrial

★ Quality 51/100
Overvalued

Price today

$477.57

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charlieapp.co

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A monopoly position

This company has a competitive advantage so strong that its rivals find it practically impossible to replicate.

What this business is made of

51qualityReturnsMoatBalance sheetPricing powerReinvestment

The business

Builds its plant right next to your factory and marries you for 20 years.

Linde produces and distributes industrial gases —oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, argon— to refineries, steelmakers, hospitals, and semiconductor makers. It charges via 10-20 year take-or-pay contracts: the customer pays even if they don't consume. FY2025 revenue of $34.0B with gross margins of 49%.

The plants are built right next to the customer's factory, locked in by two-decade contracts. Moving gas more than 200km is uneconomical, so each plant is a regional monopoly. Replacing Linde means redesigning your own production.

Revenue history

$30.8B
2021
$33.4B
2022
$32.9B
2023
$33.0B
2024
$34.0B
2025
CAGR 5 años: +3%

From $30.8B to $34.0B in 4 years. The business grows steadily.

Where each $100 of sales goes

Revenue $34.0B · FY2025

Cost of sales$17.4B · 51%
Operations$7.7B · 23%
Taxes and other$2.0B · 6%
Net profit$6.9B · 20%

Of every $100 in sales, $80 goes to costs and operations; $20 is left as net profit (20% margin).

Catalysts and risks

Clean hydrogen project backlog above $10B, with plants coming online around 2026-2028.

Demand for ultra-pure gases for semiconductors growing with the expansion of fabs in the U.S. and Asia.

Buybacks and dividends: Linde raised its dividend 32 years in a row and buys back shares consistently.

⚠️

Debt of $20.7B against cash of $5.1B; high rates make this capital-intensive business more expensive.

⚠️

Modest organic growth (CAGR ~3%); much of the earnings per share comes from pricing and buybacks, not volume.

⚠️

Cyclical exposure to steel, chemicals, and refining in a global recession hits variable volumes.

Charlie's note

A boring business that prints cash for decades: exactly the type I like. The problem isn't quality, it's price —at 22x it's already paying for its own perfection.

Analysis · June 2026

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