CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) Shares Sold by Legal & General Group Plc

Legal & General Group Plc lowered its stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 27.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,621,138 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 1,358,238 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.53% of CRH worth $335,776,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRH has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Loop Capital started coverage on shares of CRH in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $114.00 target price for the company. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 price objective on CRH in a report on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com raised CRH from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on CRH from $127.00 to $108.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on CRH from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CRH presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $109.83.

CRH Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE CRH traded up $1.71 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $86.45. The company had a trading volume of 1,263,597 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,620,334. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. CRH plc has a twelve month low of $71.18 and a twelve month high of $110.97. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $96.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $96.26.

CRH Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.71%. This is an increase from CRH's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. CRH's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.