(Reuters) – Linde, the world’s largest industrial gases company, raised its full-year earnings guidance for the third time this year on Thursday, citing higher volumes leading to growth in almost all markets.
The U.S.-German company, which supplies gases such as oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen to factories and hospitals, expects its adjusted earnings per share to grow by 17%-18% in 2022, excluding foreign currency headwinds. It previously aimed for 15%-17% growth.
It reported quarterly adjusted earnings of $3.10 per share, up 14% on the year, which beat the $2.93 forecast by analysts polled by Refinitiv.
Linde’s Frankfurt-listed shares were down 2.3% at 1035 GMT.
“Irrespective of the macro-economic uncertainty, I have confidence in our business model and high-performance culture to continue,” Chief Executive Sanjiv Lamba said in a statement.
The company said in July it produced gases which were critical from a medical or process safety perspective and so believed it would be prioritised for gas allocation from Germany’s government.
Linde has consistently beaten analysts’ quarterly estimates over the past two years, benefiting from pandemic-driven demand for consumer electronics and growing hydrogen investments as countries look to cut back on emissions.
The group’s total sales were up 15% at $8.8 billion in the three-months ending Sept. 30, above the $8.3 billion expected in a Refinitiv poll.
(Reporting by Bartosz Dabrowski in Gdansk; Additional reporting by Andrey Sychev; Editing by Jason Neely and Mike Harrison)
