Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys New Stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 447,545 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,407,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its stake in CRH by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 2,335 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $216,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in CRH by 18.3% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 971 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Manitou Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in CRH by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Manitou Investment Management Ltd. now owns 11,203 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,037,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. increased its stake in CRH by 70.7% during the 3rd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 391 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Graypoint LLC increased its stake in shares of CRH by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 3,315 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $307,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

CRH Stock Performance

CRH stock opened at $98.46 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $66.65 billion, a PE ratio of 19.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $99.25 and its 200 day moving average is $95.99. CRH plc has a one year low of $71.18 and a one year high of $110.97.

CRH Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. CRH’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CRH. StockNews.com upgraded shares of CRH from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 price objective on shares of CRH in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of CRH from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $109.25.

About CRH

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.