CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) Shares Purchased by Metis Global Partners LLC

Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its position in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 7.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 26,549 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 1,766 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in CRH were worth $1,831,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in CRH by 38.3% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 13,046 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $714,000 after acquiring an additional 3,612 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in CRH by 166.5% in the third quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 149,944 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $8,206,000 after purchasing an additional 93,675 shares during the last quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC boosted its holdings in CRH by 24.5% in the third quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 13,064 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $714,000 after purchasing an additional 2,568 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC increased its holdings in CRH by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 11,712 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $641,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund acquired a new position in shares of CRH in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,786,000. 62.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CRH. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $82.00 target price (up previously from $80.00) on shares of CRH in a research report on Monday, April 15th. StockNews.com raised CRH from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Citigroup boosted their price target on CRH from $101.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. DA Davidson initiated coverage on CRH in a research note on Friday, January 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $82.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Vertical Research began coverage on shares of CRH in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $105.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $79.31.

CRH Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:CRH opened at $79.76 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $82.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.07. CRH plc has a fifty-two week low of $47.14 and a fifty-two week high of $88.00.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The construction company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $8.69 billion during the quarter. As a group, research analysts forecast that CRH plc will post 5.36 EPS for the current year.

CRH Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a Variable dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 17th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.262 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th.

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.