CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) Receives Average Recommendation of "Buy" from Brokerages

CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Buy" from the thirteen analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $112.58.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CRH. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of CRH from $127.00 to $108.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 target price on shares of CRH in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of CRH in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of CRH from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CRH

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of CRH by 47.8% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,206 shares of the construction company's stock worth $390,000 after purchasing an additional 1,360 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of CRH by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 12,769 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,181,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of CRH in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of CRH by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 20,493 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,896,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares during the period. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its stake in CRH by 33.2% in the fourth quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 45,744 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $4,232,000 after acquiring an additional 11,408 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

CRH Stock Up 2.1%

CRH stock traded up $1.88 during trading on Monday, hitting $92.76. The company had a trading volume of 3,682,028 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,528,000. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $90.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $95.88. CRH has a 12 month low of $71.18 and a 12 month high of $110.97. The stock has a market cap of $62.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.55, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.28.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The construction company reported ($0.12) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.06) by ($0.06). CRH had a return on equity of 16.35% and a net margin of 9.86%. The business had revenue of $6.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.77 billion. Equities analysts expect that CRH will post 5.47 EPS for the current year.

CRH Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. CRH's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.52%.

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.