Ancora Advisors LLC Increases Stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Ancora Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 3.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 187,422 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 6,229 shares during the quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC's holdings in CRH were worth $17,340,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of CRH in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its position in CRH by 214.3% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 352 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CRH during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its holdings in shares of CRH by 87.7% in the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 505 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its position in CRH by 46.3% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 559 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. 62.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CRH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of CRH from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Loop Capital started coverage on shares of CRH in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $114.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of CRH from $127.00 to $108.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a research note on Wednesday. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, CRH presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $112.36.

CRH Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE:CRH traded down $2.20 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $91.75. 8,987,155 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,793,560. The firm has a market cap of $62.05 billion, a PE ratio of 18.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.33. CRH plc has a fifty-two week low of $71.18 and a fifty-two week high of $110.97. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $91.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $96.13.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The construction company reported ($0.12) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $6.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.77 billion. CRH had a return on equity of 16.35% and a net margin of 9.86%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that CRH plc will post 5.47 EPS for the current year.

CRH Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. CRH's payout ratio is 22.66%.

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.