Raiffeisen Bank International AG Acquires New Stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new stake in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 101,075 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,086,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of CRH. Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its position in CRH by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 2,335 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $216,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in CRH by 20.4% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 755 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in CRH by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 6,810 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $630,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in CRH by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,367 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $405,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in CRH by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 971 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $90,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

CRH Stock Performance

CRH opened at $97.80 on Friday. CRH plc has a one year low of $71.18 and a one year high of $110.97. The company has a market cap of $66.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.56, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.33. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $91.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $96.29.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The construction company reported ($0.12) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.06) by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $6.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.77 billion. CRH had a return on equity of 16.35% and a net margin of 9.86%. As a group, analysts predict that CRH plc will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRH Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. CRH’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on CRH shares. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 price objective on CRH in a research note on Friday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of CRH in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Loop Capital started coverage on CRH in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $114.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on CRH from $127.00 to $108.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on CRH in a research note on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $115.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $112.58.

About CRH

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.