Focus Partners Wealth Acquires 15,337 Shares of Crh Plc $CRH

Key Points

• Focus Partners Wealth increased its stake in CRH Plc by 5.4%, acquiring an additional 15,337 shares and bringing its total holdings to 300,552 shares valued at approximately $26.44 million.
• Several institutional investors, including GSA Capital Partners and Massachusetts Financial Services, have significantly altered their positions in CRH during the first quarter, with Massachusetts Financial Services increasing its holdings by 43.2%.
• Analyst sentiment is positive, with brokerages like Sanford C. Bernstein and JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgrading their ratings and price targets for CRH, suggesting a strong outlook for the stock.

Focus Partners Wealth raised its holdings in Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 5.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 300,552 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,337 shares during the quarter. Focus Partners Wealth's holdings in CRH were worth $26,440,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in CRH in the 1st quarter valued at $744,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in CRH by 43.2% in 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 during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in shares of CRH by 100.2% during the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 452,776 shares of the construction company's stock worth $39,318,000 after acquiring an additional 226,602 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of CRH by 27.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,919 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $169,000 after acquiring an additional 413 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service boosted its holdings in CRH by 8.6% in the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,154,053 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $189,492,000 after acquiring an additional 170,702 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on CRH shares. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on CRH from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on CRH in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $130.00 price objective for the company. Vertical Research upgraded CRH to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $112.00 price objective (up from $108.00) on shares of CRH in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CRH has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $116.00.

CRH Trading Up 2.9%

NYSE CRH opened at $114.52 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $104.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $96.60. The company has a market capitalization of $77.03 billion, a PE ratio of 23.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.31. Crh Plc has a 12 month low of $76.75 and a 12 month high of $114.55.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The construction company reported $1.94 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $10.27 billion. CRH had a net margin of 9.09% and a return on equity of 15.68%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.88 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Crh Plc will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRH Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date 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.

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