Freedom Investment Management Inc. Reduces Stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Freedom Investment Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 74.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,214 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 6,450 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in CRH were worth $205,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of CRH. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of CRH in the fourth quarter valued at $1,391,245,000. FMR LLC increased its holdings in CRH by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 40,843,362 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,781,004,000 after acquiring an additional 4,687,345 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in CRH by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,788,918 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,553,194,000 after acquiring an additional 2,437,868 shares during the period. AGF Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in CRH by 4,264.7% during the fourth quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 1,034,527 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $95,714,000 after purchasing an additional 1,010,825 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in CRH by 32,560.1% during the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 951,714 shares of the construction company's stock worth $88,053,000 after purchasing an additional 948,800 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on CRH from $127.00 to $108.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Loop Capital assumed coverage on CRH in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $114.00 price target for the company. Citigroup dropped their price objective on CRH from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised CRH from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $112.36.

CRH Price Performance

Shares of CRH stock opened at $85.57 on Wednesday. CRH plc has a 1 year low of $71.18 and a 1 year high of $110.97. The firm has a market cap of $57.87 billion, a PE ratio of 17.11, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $93.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $95.95.

CRH Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. 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 1.73%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. CRH's payout ratio is currently 22.66%.

About CRH

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.

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