Summit Financial LLC Grows Position in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Summit Financial LLC raised its stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 2.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,154 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 402 shares during the quarter. Summit Financial LLC’s holdings in CRH were worth $1,772,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of CRH by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,562,962 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $144,605,000 after acquiring an additional 114,072 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of CRH by 22.1% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 32,557 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,012,000 after buying an additional 5,889 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of CRH by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,450,632 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $226,732,000 after buying an additional 232,977 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of CRH by 31.8% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 23,253 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,151,000 after buying an additional 5,610 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its holdings in shares of CRH by 19.9% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 72,778 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $6,733,000 after buying an additional 12,076 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

CRH Price Performance

NYSE:CRH opened at $88.88 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.11 billion, a PE ratio of 17.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $99.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $96.78. CRH plc has a 12 month low of $71.18 and a 12 month high of $110.97.

CRH Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. CRH’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.