Linde Q2 Earnings Call Highlights

Linde reported record second-quarter sales of $9.3 billion and adjusted EPS of $4.50 , up 9% and 10% year over year, respectively.

However, operating margin declined to 29.5% due mainly to pressure in its U.S. home-care business and a mix shift toward lower-margin products.

The company raised the low end of its full-year EPS outlook to $17.70–$17.90 and expects third-quarter EPS of $4.45–$4.55.

Linde is implementing operational improvements at Lincare while evaluating the business’s strategic fit.

Strong electronics demand, particularly from semiconductor and AI-related projects, lifted Linde’s sale-of-gas backlog to a record $8.1 billion.

The company plans to start more than 20 projects involving roughly $1.3 billion of investment during the rest of 2026, while also pursuing growth in commercial space and maintaining helium supplies amid geopolitical disruptions.

Linde NASDAQ: LIN reported record second-quarter sales and earnings per share, while expanding its sale-of-gas project backlog to a record $8.1 billion following a new U.S. electronics contract.

The industrial-gases company also said it expects to start more than 20 projects during the remainder of 2026, representing approximately $1.3 billion of investment.

Chief Executive Officer Sanjiv Lamba said sales and EPS both increased at near-double-digit rates during the quarter. However, he said the company was not satisfied with its margin performance, citing pressure in its U.S. home care business and a sales mix that included higher volumes of lower-margin equipment and hard goods.

Second-Quarter Results and Outlook Second-quarter sales totaled $9.3 billion, up 9% from a year earlier and 6% sequentially, Chief Financial Officer Matt White said. Foreign exchange added 2 percentage points to year-over-year sales growth, while acquisitions and engineering each contributed 1 percentage point. Higher cost pass-through added another 1 percentage point. Excluding those items, underlying sales increased 4%, split between higher volume and pricing.

Nearly half of the volume increase came from project startups in Asia-Pacific and the Americas, while the balance reflected organic growth in the U.S., China, Korea, India and the company’s advanced materials business. Pricing rose 2% from a year earlier, broadly tracking local inflation, White said.

Operating margin was 29.5%, down 60 basis points from the prior-year period, or down 30 basis points excluding cost pass-through. Adjusted EPS was $4.50, up 10% from a year earlier, aided by higher net income and a lower share count.

Linde guided for third-quarter EPS of $4.45 to $4.55, representing growth of 6% to 8% from a year earlier. The outlook assumes no year-over-year currency impact but includes a 1% sequential foreign-exchange headwind.

The company raised the lower end of its full-year EPS outlook by $0.10, projecting $17.70 to $17.90, or growth of 8% to 9%, excluding an assumed 1% foreign-exchange tailwind.

White said the company is not yet incorporating the second quarter’s improvement in base volumes into its forward outlook. At the midpoint, third-quarter EPS is expected to rise $0.05 sequentially excluding foreign exchange, reflecting actions underway to improve performance.

Margin Pressure Centers on U.S. Home Care Lamba said the Americas segment was the primary source of margin pressure, particularly the U.S. home care business, known as Lincare. He said continued cost inflation and policy changes have outweighed the benefits of portfolio pruning efforts. According to Lamba, Americas margins excluding the home care business would hav...