CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) Short Interest Up 41.0% in August

CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 10,050,000 shares, a growth of 41.0% from the August 15th total of 7,130,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 6,490,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on CRH. Citigroup lowered their price target on CRH from $109.00 to $99.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Truist Financial upped their target price on CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of CRH from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $87.00 to $88.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of CRH from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $95.70.

CRH Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE CRH traded up $0.83 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $87.49. The stock had a trading volume of 3,235,387 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,188,839. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $83.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $81.50. CRH has a 1 year low of $51.59 and a 1 year high of $91.02.

CRH (NYSE:CRH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The construction company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.85. The firm had revenue of $9.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.16 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that CRH will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current year.

CRH Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 23rd will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 23rd. This represents a dividend yield of 1.7%.

Institutional Trading of CRH

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of CRH by 336.4% during the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 336 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 259 shares during the period. First Financial Corp IN bought a new position in shares of CRH during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in CRH by 71.5% in the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 415 shares of the construction company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new stake in CRH during the 2nd quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in CRH during the 4th quarter valued at $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.50% of the company's stock.

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.

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