CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) Shares Sold by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Clearbridge Investments LLC decreased its holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 3,137,718 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 96,430 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned 0.46% of CRH worth $235,266,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its holdings in shares of CRH by 17.0% in the 1st quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 914 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in CRH by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,908 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $423,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its stake in CRH by 71.5% during the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 415 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CRH by 3.2% in the second quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC now owns 5,997 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $450,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of CRH by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 26,605 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,840,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of CRH from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $87.00 to $88.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. StockNews.com cut CRH from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Citigroup lowered their price target on CRH from $109.00 to $99.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their target price on CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, CRH presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.70.

CRH Price Performance

CRH opened at $90.85 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $62.38 billion, a PE ratio of 15.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50-day moving average of $86.22 and a 200-day moving average of $82.22. CRH plc has a fifty-two week low of $51.59 and a fifty-two week high of $94.14.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The construction company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85. The business had revenue of $9.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.16 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that CRH plc will post 5.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRH Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, August 23rd were issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 23rd. CRH’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.77%.

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.