Boothbay Fund Management LLC Decreases Holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Boothbay Fund Management LLC decreased its holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 58.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,533 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 19,395 shares during the period. Boothbay Fund Management LLC's holdings in CRH were worth $1,252,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of CRH by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,562,962 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $144,605,000 after buying an additional 114,072 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its position in CRH by 22.1% during the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 32,557 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,012,000 after acquiring an additional 5,889 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in CRH by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,450,632 shares of the construction company's stock worth $226,732,000 after purchasing an additional 232,977 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its position in CRH by 31.8% in the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 23,253 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $2,151,000 after purchasing an additional 5,610 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its stake in shares of CRH by 19.9% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 72,778 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $6,733,000 after purchasing an additional 12,076 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of CRH from $127.00 to $108.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective 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. Loop Capital initiated coverage on shares of CRH in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $114.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com upgraded CRH from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on CRH from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $112.36.

CRH Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRH opened at $93.01 on Tuesday. CRH plc has a 52-week low of $71.18 and a 52-week high of $110.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $92.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $96.03.

CRH Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. This is a positive change from CRH's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. CRH's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.66%.

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.

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