Crh Plc $CRH Stake Boosted by Dark Forest Capital Management LP

Key Points

• Dark Forest Capital Management LP increased its share holdings in Crh Plc by 89.2%, bringing its total to 271,110 shares valued at $23.85 million, making it the firm's second biggest holding.
• CRH's stock has received positive ratings from analysts, including an "overweight" rating from JPMorgan Chase & Co. and multiple "outperform" ratings, with an average price target of $114.64.
• CRH recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 1.3%, with a dividend payout ratio of 23.22%.

Dark Forest Capital Management LP increased its stake in Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 89.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 271,110 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 127,852 shares during the quarter. CRH accounts for approximately 1.1% of Dark Forest Capital Management LP's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Dark Forest Capital Management LP's holdings in CRH were worth $23,850,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CRH. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of CRH by 62.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 63,755,468 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $5,608,567,000 after acquiring an additional 24,591,538 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in CRH during the 1st quarter valued at $597,888,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in CRH by 43.2% during 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. AGF Management Ltd. increased its stake in CRH by 195.0% during the 1st quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 3,052,011 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $268,485,000 after purchasing an additional 2,017,484 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG increased its stake in CRH by 72.2% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

CRH Stock Performance

CRH traded up $0.63 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $112.24. 3,599,695 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,118,219. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.50 billion, a PE ratio of 23.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $102.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $96.33. Crh Plc has a 1 year low of $76.75 and a 1 year high of $114.40.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The construction company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.06 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $10.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.27 billion. CRH had a return on equity of 15.68% and a net margin of 9.09%.CRH's revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.88 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Crh Plc will post 5.47 EPS 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 issued 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 payout ratio is 23.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $112.00 price target (up previously from $108.00) on shares of CRH in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Vertical Research upgraded shares of CRH to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of CRH in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $130.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, DA Davidson restated a "neutral" rating and set a $105.00 price target (down previously from $120.00) on shares of CRH in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $114.64.

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.