Linde beats Q2 earnings forecasts on strong electronics demand, lifts outlook

Linde, the world's largest industrial gases company, reported second-quarter earnings above market expectations on Friday, driven by strong demand in its electronics business, and raised the lower end of its full-year earnings forecast.

The U.S.-German company, which supplies gases such as oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen to factories and hospitals, reported a 10% rise in its adjusted earnings per share to $4.50 in the April-June period.

That was ahead of analysts' mean estimate of $4.48 per share, according to LSEG data.

Second-quarter sales in Linde's electronics end markets grew 18%, a company presentation showed. Total sales grew 9% to $9.29 billion, which also beat analysts' forecast of $8.99 billion.

Linde now expects 2026 adjusted earnings of $17.70 to $17.90 per share, having previously guided for $17.60 to $17.90 per share.

For the third quarter, it expects adjusted diluted earnings of $4.45 to $4.55 per share, up 6% to 8% from the same period last year.

"Customer proposal activity remains robust, primarily across the electronics end market, giving us confidence to further grow the backlog," CEO Sanjiv Lamba said in a statement.

Earlier on Friday, Linde said it had secured a new long-term agreement to supply ultra-high-purity industrial gases to one of the world's largest semiconductor manufacturers and would invest about $1 billion in Arizona related to that.

As semiconductor manufacturers ramp up capacity to meet demand for AI and high-performance computing chips, investors are increasingly focused on whether Linde can translate its growing exposure to the sector into sustained earnings growth.