Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Grows Stock Holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lifted its position in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 26.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 356,231 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 75,454 shares during the quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in CRH were worth $32,958,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fiduciary Trust Co grew its holdings in CRH by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 7,002 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $650,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of CRH by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 980,396 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $90,706,000 after purchasing an additional 13,081 shares during the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of CRH by 931.3% in the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,977,992 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $183,004,000 after purchasing an additional 1,786,189 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in CRH by 72.2% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,717,597 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $436,472,000 after buying an additional 1,978,225 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Drummond Knight Asset Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in CRH during the 4th quarter valued at about $14,049,000. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CRH has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of CRH in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of CRH from $127.00 to $108.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of CRH in a report on Tuesday. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 target price on CRH in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $112.36.

CRH Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CRH opened at $94.70 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.94, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.33. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $91.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $96.17. CRH plc has a 12 month low of $71.18 and a 12 month high of $110.97.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last announced its 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 business had revenue of $6.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.77 billion. CRH had a net margin of 9.86% and a return on equity of 16.35%. Analysts anticipate 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. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. CRH’s payout ratio is presently 23.52%.

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.