William Blair Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Crh Plc $CRH

Key Points

• William Blair Investment Management LLC cut its stake in CRH Plc by 53.8%, selling 188,456 shares to hold a total of 161,626 shares valued at approximately $14.84 million at the end of the last quarter.
• Vanguard Group significantly increased its investment in CRH by 62.8%, owning over 63 million shares worth approximately $5.61 billion, highlighting the mixed sentiments among major investors.
• CRH announced a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, which gives an annualized dividend yield of 1.3% and reflects a 23.22% payout ratio.

William Blair Investment Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 53.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 161,626 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 188,456 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC's holdings in CRH were worth $14,837,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in CRH by 62.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 63,755,468 shares of the construction company's stock worth $5,608,567,000 after purchasing an additional 24,591,538 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake 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 worth $906,424,000 after purchasing an additional 3,108,416 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in CRH by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,830,489 shares of the construction company's stock worth $776,818,000 after purchasing an additional 221,038 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its stake in CRH by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 8,822,801 shares of the construction company's stock worth $775,349,000 after purchasing an additional 493,796 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its stake in CRH by 11.8% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 7,979,264 shares of the construction company's stock worth $689,009,000 after purchasing an additional 843,806 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

CRH Price Performance

CRH stock opened at $117.48 on Monday. Crh Plc has a 1-year low of $76.75 and a 1-year high of $121.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $79.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.32. The company's 50-day moving average is $114.08 and its 200 day moving average is $100.22.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 return on equity of 15.68% and a net margin of 9.09%.CRH's revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.88 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Crh Plc will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRH Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. CRH's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on CRH. Bank of America began coverage on shares of CRH in a research note on Friday, September 26th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $128.00 price target on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on shares of CRH from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of CRH in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $130.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of CRH from $112.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of CRH in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $126.21.

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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