Baird Financial Group Inc. Has $1.97 Million Position in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 21.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 21,285 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 3,692 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in CRH were worth $1,969,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of CRH. Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its stake in CRH by 4.9% in the fourth 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. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of CRH by 20.4% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 755 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in CRH by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 6,810 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $630,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in CRH by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,367 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $405,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in CRH by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 971 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $90,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.50% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on CRH shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of CRH in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Loop Capital began coverage on shares of CRH in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $114.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of CRH in a research note on Tuesday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CRH presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $112.58.

CRH Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:CRH traded up $1.15 on Friday, reaching $98.98. 3,180,808 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,788,477. CRH plc has a twelve month low of $71.18 and a twelve month high of $110.97. The company has a fifty day moving average of $91.42 and a 200-day moving average of $96.29. The company has a market capitalization of $66.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.80, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.33.

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

CRH Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. CRH's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.52%.

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.