CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) Holdings Trimmed by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lessened its stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 25.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 711,075 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 245,031 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.11% of CRH worth $62,553,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its stake in shares of CRH by 214.3% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 352 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC purchased a new position in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on CRH. Loop Capital began coverage on CRH in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $114.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on CRH in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised CRH from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $112.58.

CRH Price Performance

Shares of CRH traded down $2.65 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $89.96. 2,528,080 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,368,030. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.28. CRH plc has a twelve month low of $71.18 and a twelve month high of $110.97. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $91.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $95.45.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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). The business had revenue of $6.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.77 billion. CRH had a net margin of 9.86% and a return on equity of 16.35%. On average, equities research analysts expect that CRH plc will post 5.47 EPS for the current year.

CRH Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. CRH's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.52%.

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.