Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI Sells 113,819 Shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI reduced its holdings in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 8.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,215,366 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 113,819 shares during the quarter. CRH accounts for about 0.9% of Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI's holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI owned approximately 0.18% of CRH worth $112,532,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CRH. Norges Bank bought a new position in CRH in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,391,245,000. FMR LLC raised its position in CRH by 13.0% in the fourth 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. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in CRH by 17.0% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,788,918 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,553,194,000 after purchasing an additional 2,437,868 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in CRH by 72.2% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,717,597 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $436,472,000 after purchasing an additional 1,978,225 shares during the last quarter. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. raised its position in CRH by 931.3% in the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,977,992 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $183,004,000 after purchasing an additional 1,786,189 shares during the last quarter. 62.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Loop Capital assumed coverage on CRH in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $114.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 price target on CRH in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on CRH from $127.00 to $108.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on CRH in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $112.58.

CRH Stock Down 1.1%

NYSE:CRH traded down $1.06 on Friday, hitting $94.10. The stock had a trading volume of 5,235,921 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,818,081. The business's fifty day moving average is $91.43 and its 200 day moving average is $96.30. The company has a market cap of $63.58 billion, a PE ratio of 18.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.33. CRH plc has a 52 week low of $71.18 and a 52 week high of $110.97.

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

CRH Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.57%. CRH's payout ratio is currently 23.52%.

About CRH

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.