National Bank of Canada FI Increases Stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 32,560.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 951,714 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 948,800 shares during the quarter. National Bank of Canada FI’s holdings in CRH were worth $88,053,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of CRH in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its position in shares of CRH by 214.3% in the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 352 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the period. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of CRH in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its stake in shares of CRH by 87.7% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 505 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

CRH Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE CRH opened at $88.88 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $99.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $96.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. CRH plc has a 52 week low of $71.18 and a 52 week high of $110.97.

CRH Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.37 dividend. This is an increase from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.67%. CRH’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on CRH shares. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 price target on CRH in a report on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com raised CRH from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of CRH from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $109.64.

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.