USS Investment Management Ltd Sells 33,000 Shares of Crh Plc $CRH

Key Points

• USS Investment Management Ltd has reduced its stake in Crh Plc by 22.8%, selling 33,000 shares to hold a total of 111,577 shares worth approximately $9.8 million.
• CRH's stock has received multiple rating upgrades, with Vertical Research now labeling it as a "strong-buy" and an average target price of $114.64 based on analysts' consensus.
• The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.94 in its latest quarter, which fell short of the expected $2.06, while revenues reached $10.21 billion, slightly below estimates.

USS Investment Management Ltd lessened its position in Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 22.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 111,577 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 33,000 shares during the quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd's holdings in CRH were worth $9,816,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Scientech Research LLC lifted its stake in CRH by 123.6% in the first quarter. Scientech Research LLC now owns 19,055 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,676,000 after purchasing an additional 10,532 shares during the last quarter. Panoramic Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of CRH by 86.4% in the first quarter. Panoramic Capital LLC now owns 110,000 shares of the construction company's stock worth $9,677,000 after buying an additional 50,998 shares during the period. New England Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of CRH by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. New England Asset Management Inc. now owns 64,152 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $5,643,000 after acquiring an additional 442 shares during the last quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV boosted its holdings in CRH by 130.4% during the 1st quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 745,783 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $65,607,000 after acquiring an additional 422,027 shares during the period. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in CRH by 158.5% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 8,670 shares of the construction company's stock worth $763,000 after acquiring an additional 5,316 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on CRH. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $105.00 target price (down from $120.00) on shares of CRH in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $112.00 price objective (up previously from $108.00) on shares of CRH in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Vertical Research raised shares of CRH to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of CRH in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on CRH in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $130.00 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, CRH has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $116.00.

CRH Stock Performance

Shares of CRH stock traded up $3.26 on Thursday, hitting $114.52. 4,090,922 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,432,818. Crh Plc has a 1 year low of $76.75 and a 1 year high of $114.55. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $103.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $96.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.03 billion, a PE ratio of 23.96, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.31.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The construction company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.06 by ($0.12). CRH had a net margin of 9.09% and a return on equity of 15.68%. The company had revenue of $10.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.88 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Crh Plc will post 5.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CRH Dividend Announcement

The company 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 22nd. CRH's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.