CRH (NYSE:CRH) Hits New 1-Year High at $88.59

Shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $88.59 and last traded at $88.51, with a volume of 128632 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $87.40.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRH has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup reduced their price target on CRH from $109.00 to $99.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of CRH in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on shares of CRH in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded CRH from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $87.00 to $88.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, CRH presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $95.70.

CRH Stock Performance

The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $79.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $80.19. The company has a market capitalization of $60.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.30.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The construction company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.85. The firm had revenue of $9.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.16 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that CRH plc will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current year.

CRH Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 23rd. CRH's dividend payout ratio is 29.97%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CRH

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CRH during the fourth quarter valued at $3,358,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in CRH during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $467,000. CWM LLC grew its holdings in CRH by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,498 shares of the construction company's stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN boosted its holdings in CRH by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 16,985 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,175,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PDS Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of CRH in the fourth quarter worth about $244,000. 62.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CRH Company 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.