Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Buys 4,050 Shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its holdings in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 24.7% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 20,431 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 4,050 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in CRH were worth $1,532,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Greenhaven Associates Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CRH by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 11,120,064 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $833,782,000 after buying an additional 91,267 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of CRH by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,618,144 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $646,188,000 after buying an additional 431,172 shares in the last quarter. Putnam Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CRH by 3,384.4% during the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 6,781,697 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $469,022,000 after buying an additional 6,587,066 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CRH by 35,497.5% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 5,082,961 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $438,455,000 after buying an additional 5,068,682 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CRH by 103.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,642,729 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $348,112,000 after buying an additional 2,365,589 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

CRH Stock Performance

CRH opened at $91.49 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.30. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $85.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $81.92. CRH plc has a 52-week low of $51.59 and a 52-week high of $93.07.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The construction company reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.85. The business had revenue of $9.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.16 billion. Research analysts forecast that CRH plc will post 5.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CRH Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 23rd will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 23rd. CRH’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of CRH in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com cut shares of CRH from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of CRH from $109.00 to $99.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.70.

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.