Crh Plc $CRH Stock Holdings Lowered by Royal Bank of Canada

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada reduced its holdings in Crh Plc by 22.4%, now owning 10,410,171 shares valued at approximately $915.8 million.
• CRH reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.94 for the last quarter, missing estimates of $2.06, with revenues of $10.21 billion falling short of $10.27 billion projections.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.3% for shareholders.

Royal Bank of Canada lowered its stake in Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 22.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,410,171 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 3,008,636 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned 1.54% of CRH worth $915,783,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CRH. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of CRH in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of CRH in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Colonial Trust Co SC bought a new stake in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of CRH by 86.7% during the 1st quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 448 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on CRH shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $112.00 price objective (up previously from $108.00) on shares of CRH in a research report on Friday, August 8th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $105.00 price objective (down previously from $120.00) on shares of CRH in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of CRH in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of CRH in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $130.00 price objective for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CRH currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $114.64.

CRH Trading Down 0.3%

CRH stock traded down $0.38 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $111.53. 3,044,825 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,484,895. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $101.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $96.30. The firm has a market cap of $75.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.33, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.31. Crh Plc has a fifty-two week low of $76.75 and a fifty-two week high of $114.40.

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

CRH Dividend Announcement

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

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.