Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Raises Position in Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 11.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,748,643 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 185,681 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.26% of CRH worth $153,828,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of CRH. Norges Bank bought a new stake in CRH during the 4th quarter worth $1,391,245,000. FMR LLC grew its position in CRH by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 40,843,362 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,781,004,000 after acquiring an additional 4,687,345 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in CRH by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,788,918 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,553,194,000 after acquiring an additional 2,437,868 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in shares of CRH by 72.2% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,717,597 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $436,472,000 after buying an additional 1,978,225 shares during the last quarter. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of CRH by 931.3% in the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,977,992 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $183,004,000 after buying an additional 1,786,189 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CRH shares. Loop Capital started coverage on CRH in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $114.00 price target on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on CRH in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on CRH from $127.00 to $108.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of CRH in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, CRH presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $114.18.

CRH Trading Up 2.7%

NYSE CRH traded up $2.45 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $91.52. 6,725,847 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,950,368. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $92.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $94.58. The firm has a market cap of $61.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.39, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.28. Crh Plc has a 1-year low of $71.18 and a 1-year 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 15.88% and a net margin of 9.17%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. CRH's payout ratio is currently 23.52%.

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.