Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Increases Position in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 136.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,402 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,385 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in CRH were worth $222,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CRH. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of CRH by 33.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 36,156,017 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,341,258,000 after buying an additional 9,055,354 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in CRH by 515.7% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,103,194 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $473,270,000 after acquiring an additional 4,274,336 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in CRH by 8.7% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 14,351,050 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,329,796,000 after purchasing an additional 1,148,708 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of CRH by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,609,451 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $796,546,000 after purchasing an additional 826,758 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of CRH by 48.2% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,484,746 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $231,206,000 after purchasing an additional 808,061 shares in the last quarter. 62.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CRH. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of CRH from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded CRH to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on CRH from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on CRH from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of CRH from $95.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $108.45.

CRH Trading Up 6.8 %

CRH stock opened at $102.81 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $98.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $95.66. CRH plc has a 12-month low of $71.18 and a 12-month high of $110.97. The stock has a market cap of $69.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.56, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30.

CRH Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. This is an increase from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. CRH’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.87%.

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.