Groupama Asset Managment Sells 31,867 Shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Groupama Asset Managment lessened its holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 20.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 120,734 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 31,867 shares during the quarter. Groupama Asset Managment’s holdings in CRH were worth $11,170,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in CRH by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,163,930 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,624,719,000 after buying an additional 145,101 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of CRH by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,788,918 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,553,194,000 after acquiring an additional 2,437,868 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of CRH in the 4th quarter worth about $1,391,245,000. State Street Corp boosted its stake in CRH by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,139,233 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,218,532,000 after purchasing an additional 618,786 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in CRH by 10.6% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

CRH Stock Down 0.1 %

NYSE CRH opened at $88.04 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.61, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $99.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $96.77. CRH plc has a 52 week low of $71.18 and a 52 week high of $110.97.

CRH Increases Dividend

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

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.