Crh Plc $CRH Shares Purchased by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Lazard Asset Management increased its CRH stake by 4.1% in the first quarter, purchasing 93,106 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 2.34 million shares valued at approximately $245.5 million.
• Institutional investors own 62.5% of CRH, with several funds also expanding their positions. The stock opened at $99.99, near its one-year low of $93.58 and below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• CRH exceeded first-quarter earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $7.37 billion in revenue and $0.20 in adjusted EPS, while analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating with a $141.19 price target. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.39 per share.

Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 4.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,336,754 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 93,106 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.35% of CRH worth $245,460,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pacific Capital Partners Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of CRH by 47.1% in the 4th quarter. Pacific Capital Partners Ltd now owns 43,750 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $5,460,000 after purchasing an additional 14,000 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of CRH by 680.6% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 119,237 shares of the construction company's stock worth $14,881,000 after buying an additional 103,962 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of CRH by 33.2% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,021,734 shares of the construction company's stock worth $377,112,000 after buying an additional 752,463 shares during the period. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd raised its position in shares of CRH by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd now owns 4,337,447 shares of the construction company's stock worth $541,313,000 after buying an additional 137,048 shares during the period. Finally, Mirabaud Asset Management Ltd boosted its holdings in CRH by 38.2% in the fourth quarter. Mirabaud Asset Management Ltd now owns 98,038 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $12,235,000 after acquiring an additional 27,118 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

CRH Price Performance

Shares of CRH stock opened at $99.99 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $105.41 and a 200-day moving average of $112.21. The company has a market capitalization of $66.81 billion, a PE ratio of 18.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.32. Crh Plc has a 1-year low of $93.58 and a 1-year high of $131.55.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The construction company reported ($0.20) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.22) by $0.02. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.07 billion. CRH had a return on equity of 15.37% and a net margin of 9.65%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. CRH has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.600-6.050 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Crh Plc will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRH Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. CRH's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRH has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on CRH from $149.00 to $165.60 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of CRH in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Weiss Ratings cut CRH from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $139.00 target price on shares of CRH in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of CRH from $135.00 to $132.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CRH has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $141.19.

About CRH

CRH plc, originally formed as Cement Roadstone Holdings in 1970 and headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, is a global building materials group. The company has grown from its Irish roots into one of the largest international suppliers of construction materials, expanding primarily through acquisitions and regional business development. CRH operates an integrated network of manufacturing and distribution businesses that serve both public and private construction markets.

CRH's core activities include the production and distribution of aggregates, cement, asphalt, ready-mixed concrete and other bulk materials, together with a broad range of value-added building products such as precast concrete, masonry, bricks, roofing products, pipe and drainage systems, and construction accessories.

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