Vanguard Group Inc. Has $9.87 Billion Stock Position in Crh Plc $CRH

Key Points

• Vanguard Group increased its CRH stake by 22.7% in Q4 to 79,117,664 shares — roughly a 11.8% ownership valued at $9.87 billion.
• CRH missed quarterly expectations (EPS $1.52 vs. $2.20 estimate; revenue $9.42B vs. $11.15B) but analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target of $139.54.
• CRH raised its quarterly dividend to $0.39 (annualized $1.56), yielding about 1.3% with a payout ratio near 28%.

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 22.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 79,117,664 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 14,623,673 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 11.80% of CRH worth $9,873,884,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in CRH by 2.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,728,016 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,645,995,000 after purchasing an additional 392,146 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in CRH by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 12,439,954 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,552,506,000 after purchasing an additional 78,769 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its stake in CRH by 1.7% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 9,816,938 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,176,530,000 after purchasing an additional 162,110 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in CRH by 6.6% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 9,788,282 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,173,615,000 after purchasing an additional 603,082 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in CRH by 0.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,449,387 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $893,181,000 after purchasing an additional 45,543 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on CRH from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded CRH to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $139.00 target price on shares of CRH in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on CRH from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on CRH from $138.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CRH currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $139.54.

CRH Stock Performance

CRH opened at $117.99 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $78.84 billion, a PE ratio of 21.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.35. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $111.80 and a 200-day moving average of $117.91. Crh Plc has a 52-week low of $86.82 and a 52-week high of $131.55.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The construction company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.20 by ($0.68). The company had revenue of $9.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.15 billion. CRH had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 10.02%.The business's revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.02 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Crh Plc will post 5.95 earnings per share for the current year.

CRH Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th were paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This is a boost from CRH's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. CRH's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.26%.

CRH Company Profile

CRH plc, originally formed as Cement Roadstone Holdings in 1970 and headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, is a global building materials group. The company has grown from its Irish roots into one of the largest international suppliers of construction materials, expanding primarily through acquisitions and regional business development. CRH operates an integrated network of manufacturing and distribution businesses that serve both public and private construction markets.

CRH's core activities include the production and distribution of aggregates, cement, asphalt, ready-mixed concrete and other bulk materials, together with a broad range of value-added building products such as precast concrete, masonry, bricks, roofing products, pipe and drainage systems, and construction accessories.

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