Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. Purchases New Shares in Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH)

Key Points

• Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. has invested approximately $1.65 million in a new stake of 18,705 shares of CRH Plc during the first quarter.
• The latest quarterly earnings report showed that CRH missed analysts' expectations with an EPS of $1.94 compared to the forecast of $2.06 and revenue slightly below estimates at $10.21 billion.
• CRH recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, which translates to an annualized payout of $1.48 and a yield of 1.4%.

Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 18,705 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $1,645,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of CRH by 62.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 63,755,468 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $5,608,567,000 after buying an additional 24,591,538 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in CRH by 43.2% in the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,303,788 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $906,424,000 after purchasing an additional 3,108,416 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in CRH by 72.2% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,717,597 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $436,472,000 after buying an additional 1,978,225 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in CRH by 931.3% in the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,977,992 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $183,004,000 after buying an additional 1,786,189 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in CRH by 43.5% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 4,813,580 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $445,352,000 after buying an additional 1,458,303 shares during the period. 62.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CRH Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRH traded up $4.73 on Tuesday, hitting $112.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,540,199 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,542,755. Crh Plc has a 12 month low of $76.75 and a 12 month high of $112.19. The company has a market capitalization of $75.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.26. The stock's 50-day moving average is $94.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $95.07.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The construction company reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $10.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.88 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Crh Plc will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRH Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd will be given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. CRH's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CRH. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a report on Friday. Vertical Research raised CRH to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $105.00 target price (down from $120.00) on shares of CRH in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $112.00 price target (up from $108.00) on shares of CRH in a report on Friday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $113.18.

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.