Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Decreases Stock Position in Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH)

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System has reduced its stake in CRH Plc by 12.5%, now holding 32,120 shares worth approximately $2.83 million.
• In contrast, Vanguard Group Inc. significantly increased its stake in CRH by 62.8%, now owning nearly 63.8 million shares valued at around $5.61 billion.
• CRH has disclosed a quarterly dividend of $0.37, with an annual yield of 1.4%, scheduled for distribution on September 24th.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its holdings in shares of Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 12.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 32,120 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 4,570 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in CRH were worth $2,826,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of CRH in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of CRH in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of CRH in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Colonial Trust Co SC acquired a new position in shares of CRH in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of CRH by 86.7% in the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 448 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the period. 62.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on CRH. DA Davidson reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $105.00 price target (down from $120.00) on shares of CRH in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of CRH in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $112.00 price target (up from $108.00) on shares of CRH in a research report on Friday. Finally, Vertical Research raised shares of CRH to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $113.18.

CRH Price Performance

CRH stock traded up $4.73 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $112.15. 7,540,199 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,652,752. The company has a market cap of $75.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.26. The stock's 50 day moving average is $94.50 and its 200 day moving average is $94.95. Crh Plc has a 12-month low of $76.75 and a 12-month high of $112.19.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 business 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%. The business'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. On average, research analysts forecast that Crh Plc will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRH Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. 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.