Scotia Capital Inc. Increases Stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Scotia Capital Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 62,621 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 829 shares during the quarter. Scotia Capital Inc.’s holdings in CRH were worth $5,794,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of CRH during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $372,000. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its holdings in CRH by 7.7% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 35,358 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,279,000 after purchasing an additional 2,518 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its holdings in CRH by 78.8% during the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 49,825 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,620,000 after purchasing an additional 21,962 shares in the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of CRH by 15.6% in the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,631 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $340,000 after purchasing an additional 489 shares during the period. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of CRH by 31.0% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 11,229 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,041,000 after purchasing an additional 2,660 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

CRH Stock Performance

CRH stock opened at $84.75 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $57.31 billion, a PE ratio of 16.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $96.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $96.24. CRH plc has a fifty-two week low of $71.18 and a fifty-two week 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 issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. CRH’s payout ratio is 22.66%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on CRH shares. Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of CRH in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $114.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price objective on CRH from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 target price on CRH in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of CRH from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CRH has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.00.

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.