CRH vs. LIN: CRH vs. Linde Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN) both fall under the Materials industry group, but CRH is classified in Construction Materials while LIN is classified in Chemicals.

Company profile comparison for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN)
Profile Item	CRH	LIN
Name	CRH plc Ordinary Shares	Linde plc
Country/Region	Ireland	United Kingdom
GICS Sector	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry Group	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry	Construction Materials	Chemicals
GICS Sub-Industry	Construction Materials	Industrial Gases
Market Capitalization	63.07 billion USD	236.54 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	Nasdaq
Listing Date	July 13, 1989	June 17, 1992
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CRH

LIN

GSPC

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN)
Metric	CRH	LIN
Total Return (1Y)	-12.62%	25.64%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	20.74%	11.48%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	17.05%	10.50%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CRH

LIN

GSPC

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

CRH (CRH) has an aggressive beta of 1.31, indicating higher sensitivity to broad-market moves, while Linde (LIN) is defensive at 0.67 and tends to be less market-sensitive — they sit on opposite ends of the beta spectrum.

Risk profile metrics for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN)
Metric	CRH	LIN
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	34.06%	19.00%
Beta (5Y)	1.31	0.67
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-39.04%	-22.82%
Avg. Volume (3M)	5.16M	2.05M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

CRH and LIN are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN)
Metric	CRH	LIN
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	-0.50	1.12
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	-0.73	1.65

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both CRH (CRH) at 13.92% and Linde (LIN) at 17.72% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

CRH

Materials industry group

13.92%

Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
CRH: 13.92%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

LIN

Materials industry group

17.72%

Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
LIN: 17.72%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their ROE against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Linde (LIN) at 19.34% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of CRH (CRH) at 9.19%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

CRH

Materials industry group

9.19%

Max: 38.66%
Q3: 15.98%
CRH: 9.19%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

LIN

Materials industry group

19.34%

Max: 38.66%
LIN: 19.34%
Q3: 15.98%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their net margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both CRH (CRH) at 18.18% and Linde (LIN) at 27.97% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

CRH

Materials industry group

18.18%

Max: 66.70%
Q3: 28.92%
CRH: 18.18%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

LIN

Materials industry group

27.97%

Max: 66.70%
Q3: 28.92%
LIN: 27.97%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their operating margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN)
Metric	CRH	LIN
ROE (TTM)	13.92%	17.72%
ROA (TTM)	5.73%	7.17%
Net Margin (TTM)	9.19%	19.34%
Operating Margin (TTM)	18.18%	27.97%
Gross Margin (TTM)	36.23%	47.86%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both CRH (CRH) at 5.27% and Linde (LIN) at 2.97% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both CRH (CRH) at 9.76% and Linde (LIN) at 7.27% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN)
Metric	CRH	LIN
Revenue Growth (YoY)	5.27%	2.97%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	4.60%	0.62%
EPS Growth (YoY)	9.76%	7.27%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	3.08%	21.08%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

CRH (CRH) at 1.46 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Linde (LIN) at 0.86 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for LIN.

CRH

Materials industry group

1.46

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
CRH: 1.46
Q1: 1.45
Min: 0.16

LIN

Materials industry group

0.86

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
LIN: 0.86
Min: 0.16

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their current ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both CRH (CRH) at 0.82 and Linde (LIN) at 0.65 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

CRH

Materials industry group

0.82

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
CRH: 0.82
Median: 0.47
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

LIN

Materials industry group

0.65

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
LIN: 0.65
Median: 0.47
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN)
Metric	CRH	LIN
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.46	0.86
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.82	0.65
Net Debt / EBITDA	2.12	1.65

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both CRH (CRH) at 1.61% and Linde (LIN) at 1.21% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

CRH

Materials industry group

1.61%

Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
CRH: 1.61%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

LIN

Materials industry group

1.21%

Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
LIN: 1.21%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

CRH (CRH) at 29.00% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while Linde (LIN) at 41.83% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

CRH

Materials industry group

29.00%

Max: 83.62%
Q3: 41.37%
CRH: 29.00%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

LIN

Materials industry group

41.83%

Max: 83.62%
LIN: 41.83%
Q3: 41.37%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN)
Metric	CRH	LIN
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.61%	1.21%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	29.00%	41.83%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

CRH (CRH) at 17.85 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Linde (LIN) at 34.21 sits in the richer quartile — LIN needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

CRH

Materials industry group

17.85

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
CRH: 17.85
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

LIN

Materials industry group

34.21

Max: 59.00
LIN: 34.21
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

CRH (CRH) at 1.62 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Linde (LIN) at 6.53 sits in the pricier quartile — LIN costs more per dollar of sales.

CRH

Materials industry group

1.62

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
Median: 1.87
CRH: 1.62
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

LIN

Materials industry group

6.53

Max: 9.62
LIN: 6.53
Q3: 4.34
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

CRH (CRH) at 2.52 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Linde (LIN) at 6.00 carries an above-peer premium to book — LIN is pricier on assets.

CRH

Materials industry group

2.52

Max: 6.59
Q3: 3.55
CRH: 2.52
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

LIN

Materials industry group

6.00

Max: 6.59
LIN: 6.00
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

CRH (CRH) vs. Linde (LIN): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for CRH (CRH) and Linde (LIN)
Metric	CRH	LIN
P/E Ratio (TTM)	17.85	34.21
P/S Ratio (TTM)	1.62	6.53
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	2.52	6.00
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	3.61%	1.77%