JPMorgan Chase & Co. Initiates Coverage on CRH (NYSE:CRH)

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has reissued an "overweight" rating for CRH, increasing its price target to $130.00, indicating a potential upside of 15.22% from the previous close.
• The consensus rating for CRH is currently "Buy," with a price target average of $114.64, reflecting positive sentiment among analysts despite the stock's recent decline of 0.4%.
• CRH reported third-quarter earnings of $1.94 EPS, missing estimates by ($0.12) but showing a 5.7% increase in revenue compared to the same period last year.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm set an "overweight" rating and a $130.00 price target on the construction company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 15.16% from the company's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on CRH. DA Davidson restated a "neutral" rating and set a $105.00 price objective (down previously from $120.00) on shares of CRH in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $112.00 price objective (up previously from $108.00) on shares of CRH in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Vertical Research upgraded CRH to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on CRH in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $114.64.

CRH Price Performance

CRH stock traded down $0.30 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $112.89. 3,532,118 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,680,089. The business's 50 day moving average price is $100.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $96.12. CRH has a 52-week low of $76.75 and a 52-week high of $114.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.94 billion, a PE ratio of 23.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.26.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The construction company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.06 by ($0.12). CRH had a net margin of 9.09% and a return on equity of 15.68%. The firm had revenue of $10.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.27 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.88 EPS. CRH's revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that CRH will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of CRH

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Munro Partners bought a new position in shares of CRH during the second quarter valued at approximately $4,097,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of CRH during the second quarter valued at approximately $678,000. L1 Capital Pty Ltd grew its holdings in shares of CRH by 13.4% during the second quarter. L1 Capital Pty Ltd now owns 1,295,560 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $118,932,000 after purchasing an additional 153,123 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of CRH by 428.1% during the second quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 52,809 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $4,848,000 after purchasing an additional 42,809 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of CRH by 0.8% during the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 107,041 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $9,826,000 after purchasing an additional 879 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.50% of the company's stock.

CRH Company 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.