Swedbank AB Raises Holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Swedbank AB raised its position in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 68.7% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 170,442 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 69,418 shares during the period. Swedbank AB’s holdings in CRH were worth $15,807,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRH. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in shares of CRH by 72.7% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 297 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new position in CRH in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CRH by 336.4% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 336 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its stake in CRH by 71.5% during the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 415 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in CRH in the 2nd quarter valued at $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

CRH Stock Up 0.8 %

CRH opened at $93.64 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $64.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.30. CRH plc has a 52 week low of $51.59 and a 52 week high of $94.14. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $88.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $82.67.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The construction company reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.85. The firm had revenue of $9.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.16 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that CRH plc will post 5.44 earnings per share for the current year.

CRH Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, August 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 23rd. CRH’s payout ratio is currently 29.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on CRH shares. Morgan Stanley upgraded CRH from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $87.00 to $88.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of CRH from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of CRH from $109.00 to $99.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price objective on CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CRH presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.70.

CRH 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.