Yousif Capital Management LLC Acquires 57,326 Shares of Crh Plc $CRH

Key Points

• Yousif Capital Management boosted its stake in CRH by 689.8% during Q4, acquiring 57,326 shares to hold 65,636 shares worth about $7.93 million at quarter-end.
• CRH missed quarterly expectations, reporting $1.52 EPS versus a $2.20 consensus and revenue of $9.42 billion versus $11.15 billion, though revenue was up 6.2% year-over-year; net margin was 10.02% and ROE 15.98%.
• CRH raised its quarterly dividend from $0.37 to $0.39 (annualized $1.56, yield ~1.4%), and analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $139.69 after several upward target revisions.

Yousif Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 689.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 65,636 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 57,326 shares during the quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC's holdings in CRH were worth $7,933,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CRH. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in CRH by 158.5% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 8,670 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $763,000 after acquiring an additional 5,316 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in CRH by 5.3% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,178 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,159,000 after buying an additional 658 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in CRH by 58.5% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,279 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $393,000 after buying an additional 1,579 shares in the last quarter. CW Advisors LLC boosted its position in CRH by 7.4% in the second quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 5,615 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $516,000 after buying an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ossiam boosted its position in CRH by 2.3% in the second quarter. Ossiam now owns 9,863 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $905,000 after buying an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

CRH Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CRH opened at $113.91 on Thursday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $113.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $117.86. Crh Plc has a fifty-two week low of $77.79 and a fifty-two week high of $131.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $76.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.35.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The construction company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.20 by ($0.68). CRH had a net margin of 10.02% and a return on equity of 15.98%. The business had revenue of $9.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.02 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Crh Plc will post 5.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CRH Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were issued a $0.39 dividend. This is an increase from CRH's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. CRH's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on CRH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of CRH from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of CRH from $138.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of CRH in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of CRH from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of CRH from $142.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, CRH presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $139.69.

CRH 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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