Martin Currie Ltd. Sells 30,500 Shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Martin Currie Ltd. decreased its holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 9.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 281,500 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 30,500 shares during the quarter. Martin Currie Ltd.’s holdings in CRH were worth $26,052,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in CRH in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in CRH by 214.3% in the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 352 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in CRH during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its position in CRH by 87.7% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 505 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Spire Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of CRH in the 4th quarter worth $57,000. 62.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on CRH. StockNews.com upgraded CRH from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of CRH from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 price objective on shares of CRH in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CRH currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $109.64.

CRH Stock Down 4.4 %

CRH opened at $88.09 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $59.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $99.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $96.68. CRH plc has a 52-week low of $71.18 and a 52-week high of $110.97.

CRH Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.68%. This is a boost from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. CRH’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.51%.

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.