Fiduciary Trust Co Boosts Stock Position in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Fiduciary Trust Co raised its position in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 5.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 7,002 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 390 shares during the period. Fiduciary Trust Co’s holdings in CRH were worth $650,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CRH. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its position in shares of CRH by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,562,962 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $144,605,000 after buying an additional 114,072 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its position in CRH by 22.1% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 32,557 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,012,000 after acquiring an additional 5,889 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in CRH by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,450,632 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $226,732,000 after acquiring an additional 232,977 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its position in CRH by 31.8% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 23,253 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,151,000 after acquiring an additional 5,610 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its position in CRH by 19.9% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 72,778 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $6,733,000 after acquiring an additional 12,076 shares during the last quarter. 62.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CRH Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of CRH opened at $94.70 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $91.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $96.20. CRH plc has a fifty-two week low of $71.18 and a fifty-two week high of $110.97. The firm has a market cap of $63.98 billion, a PE ratio of 18.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.33.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The construction company reported ($0.12) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.06) by ($0.06). CRH had a net margin of 9.86% and a return on equity of 16.35%. The business had revenue of $6.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.77 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CRH plc will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current year.

CRH Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. CRH’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CRH. StockNews.com upgraded shares of CRH from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of CRH in a research report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of CRH in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of CRH in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $114.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CRH presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $112.36.

CRH Company Profile

CRH plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides building materials solutions in Ireland and internationally. It operates through four segments: Americas Materials Solutions, Americas Building Solutions, Europe Materials Solutions, and Europe Building Solutions. The company provides solutions for the construction and maintenance of public infrastructure and commercial and residential buildings; and produces and sells aggregates, cement, readymixed concrete, and asphalt, as well as provides paving and construction services.