Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Buys Shares of 9,520 CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 9,520 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $714,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CRH. Nordea Investment Management AB bought a new stake in shares of CRH in the 1st quarter worth about $71,172,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in CRH by 211.8% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 38,683 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,337,000 after purchasing an additional 26,276 shares in the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its stake in CRH by 2,426.7% during the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 2,826,501 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $195,481,000 after buying an additional 2,714,634 shares in the last quarter. Norden Group LLC acquired a new stake in CRH during the first quarter valued at approximately $4,041,000. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC bought a new position in CRH during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,277,000. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

CRH Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE CRH opened at $92.85 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $84.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $81.79. The stock has a market cap of $63.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.30. CRH plc has a fifty-two week low of $51.59 and a fifty-two week high of $93.07.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The construction company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.85. The firm had revenue of $9.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.16 billion. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that CRH plc will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRH Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 23rd will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 23rd. CRH’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stephens started coverage on CRH in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of CRH from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Morgan Stanley upgraded CRH from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $87.00 to $88.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Citigroup cut 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.70.

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.