Clearbridge Investments LLC Purchases 461,427 Shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its position in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 15.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,532,378 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 461,427 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned approximately 0.49% of CRH worth $244,299,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CRH. Orion Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of CRH by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC now owns 400 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. purchased a new stake in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. WASHINGTON TRUST Co purchased a new stake in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. 62.50% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CRH shares. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $82.00 target price (up from $80.00) on shares of CRH in a report on Monday, April 15th. Vertical Research started coverage on CRH in a report on Friday, March 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $105.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded CRH from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Royal Bank of Canada started coverage on CRH in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $110.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on CRH from $101.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, CRH presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $83.28.

CRH Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of CRH traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $81.85. The stock had a trading volume of 2,466,489 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,605,197. The company has a market cap of $56.20 billion, a PE ratio of 14.04, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.29. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $82.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.67. CRH plc has a fifty-two week low of $47.14 and a fifty-two week high of $88.00.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 10th. The construction company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.60 billion. Equities analysts expect that CRH plc will post 5.36 earnings per share for the current year.

CRH Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a Variable dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a yield of 1.7%. This is a positive change from CRH's previous Variable dividend of $0.23. CRH's payout ratio is currently 21.61%.

CRH 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.