Magnetar Financial LLC Makes New Investment in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 39,786 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,983,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of CRH by 336.4% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 336 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new stake in CRH during the first quarter worth about $26,000. NBC Securities Inc. grew its position in CRH by 71.5% during the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 415 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CRH during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. 62.50% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on CRH shares. Truist Financial raised their price objective on CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of CRH from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $87.00 to $88.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of CRH from $109.00 to $99.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 11th. StockNews.com cut shares of CRH from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Stephens initiated coverage on CRH in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.70.

CRH Price Performance

NYSE CRH opened at $91.97 on Tuesday. CRH plc has a 12 month low of $51.59 and a 12 month high of $93.07. The company has a 50-day moving average of $84.90 and a 200-day moving average of $81.85. The company has a market cap of $63.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.30.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The construction company reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85. The company had revenue of $9.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.16 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CRH plc will post 5.45 EPS for the current year.

CRH Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 23rd will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 23rd. CRH’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.72%.

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.