BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp Has $12.10 Million Stock Holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 14.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 130,743 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 16,106 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp's holdings in CRH were worth $12,096,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC raised its position in CRH by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 40,843,362 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $3,781,004,000 after purchasing an additional 4,687,345 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in CRH by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,163,930 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,624,719,000 after buying an additional 145,101 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of CRH by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,788,918 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,553,194,000 after acquiring an additional 2,437,868 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,391,245,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in CRH by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,609,451 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $796,546,000 after purchasing an additional 826,758 shares in the last quarter. 62.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Loop Capital began coverage on CRH in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $114.00 price objective for the company. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 price target on CRH in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on CRH from $127.00 to $108.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of CRH from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CRH currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $112.58.

CRH Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRH traded down $2.16 on Wednesday, reaching $93.05. 1,221,736 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,792,465. The company's 50 day moving average is $91.28 and its 200-day moving average is $96.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.87 billion, a PE ratio of 18.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.33. CRH plc has a fifty-two week low of $71.18 and a fifty-two week high of $110.97.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The construction company reported ($0.12) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $6.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.77 billion. CRH had a return on equity of 16.35% and a net margin of 9.86%. As a group, analysts expect that CRH plc will post 5.47 EPS for the current year.

CRH Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.59%. CRH's payout ratio is presently 23.52%.

CRH 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.