Crh Plc $CRH Holdings Raised by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its stake in Crh Plc (NYSE:CRH) by 34.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 500,013 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 129,429 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in CRH were worth $62,402,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CRH. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new position in shares of CRH in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of CRH by 87.6% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 212 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the period. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CRH in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. United Community Bank lifted its position in shares of CRH by 359.6% in the 3rd quarter. United Community Bank now owns 239 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. boosted its stake in CRH by 1,835.3% in the 2nd quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 329 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRH has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of CRH from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. DA Davidson set a $120.00 target price on CRH in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $139.00 price target on shares of CRH in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. UBS Group upped their price target on CRH from $138.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on CRH from $142.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $139.54.

CRH Stock Performance

Shares of CRH opened at $114.54 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $76.54 billion, a PE ratio of 20.75, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.35. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $111.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $117.89. Crh Plc has a twelve month low of $86.82 and a twelve month high of $131.55.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The construction company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.20 by ($0.68). The business had revenue of $9.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.15 billion. CRH had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 10.02%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.02 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Crh Plc will post 5.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRH Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were issued a $0.39 dividend. This is a boost from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. CRH’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.26%.

CRH Profile

CRH plc, originally formed as Cement Roadstone Holdings in 1970 and headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, is a global building materials group. The company has grown from its Irish roots into one of the largest international suppliers of construction materials, expanding primarily through acquisitions and regional business development. CRH operates an integrated network of manufacturing and distribution businesses that serve both public and private construction markets.

CRH’s core activities include the production and distribution of aggregates, cement, asphalt, ready-mixed concrete and other bulk materials, together with a broad range of value-added building products such as precast concrete, masonry, bricks, roofing products, pipe and drainage systems, and construction accessories.