Findlay Park Partners LLP Acquires 372,100 Shares of Crh Plc $CRH

Key Points

• Findlay Park Partners LLP increased its stake in CRH Plc by 17.0%, owning a total of 2,556,511 shares after purchasing an additional 372,100 shares in the first quarter.
• CRH reported a net margin of 9.09% and earnings of $1.94 per share, missing estimates by $0.12, with revenues totaling $10.21 billion for the quarter.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.37, representing a 1.3% yield and a payout ratio of 23.22%, to be paid on September 24th.

Findlay Park Partners LLP raised its position in shares of Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 17.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,556,511 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 372,100 shares during the period. CRH makes up approximately 2.3% of Findlay Park Partners LLP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Findlay Park Partners LLP owned about 0.38% of CRH worth $224,896,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CRH. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CRH by 349.0% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,354 shares of the construction company's stock worth $310,000 after acquiring an additional 2,607 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of CRH by 18.7% in the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 45,805 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $4,244,000 after buying an additional 7,209 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of CRH by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,948 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $365,000 after buying an additional 317 shares during the period. III Capital Management raised its position in CRH by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. III Capital Management now owns 56,534 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $5,231,000 after purchasing an additional 4,267 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in CRH by 20.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,145,116 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $383,506,000 after purchasing an additional 714,623 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on CRH shares. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of CRH in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $112.00 price objective (up from $108.00) on shares of CRH in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Vertical Research upgraded CRH to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on CRH in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 price target for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a report on Friday, August 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $114.64.

CRH Price Performance

Shares of CRH stock traded down $0.30 on Friday, reaching $112.89. 3,532,118 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,680,089. The company has a market cap of $75.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.62, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a 50-day moving average of $100.51 and a 200-day moving average of $96.12. Crh Plc has a one year low of $76.75 and a one year high of $114.40.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last released 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 company had revenue of $10.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.27 billion. CRH had a return on equity of 15.68% and a net margin of 9.09%.CRH's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Crh Plc will post 5.47 EPS for the current year.

CRH Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. 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 23.22%.

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.