State Street Corp Acquires 618,786 Shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

State Street Corp increased its stake in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH - Free Report) by 4.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,139,233 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 618,786 shares during the quarter. State Street Corp owned approximately 1.92% of CRH worth $1,218,532,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Stifel Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of CRH by 10.7% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 104,969 shares of the construction company's stock worth $9,735,000 after purchasing an additional 10,136 shares in the last quarter. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in CRH in the 3rd quarter worth $65,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in CRH by 23.9% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 41,805 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,875,000 after buying an additional 8,071 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of CRH by 153.9% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,643 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $152,000 after acquiring an additional 996 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of CRH by 1.7% in the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 452,499 shares of the construction company's stock worth $41,965,000 after acquiring an additional 7,718 shares during the period. 62.50% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on CRH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on CRH from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Barclays began coverage on shares of CRH in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $110.00 target price on the stock. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of CRH from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of CRH from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, HSBC initiated coverage on CRH in a research report on Monday, November 11th. They set a "buy" rating and a $116.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $106.42.

CRH Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRH traded up $0.16 during trading on Friday, hitting $103.00. The company had a trading volume of 3,686,342 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,737,332. The stock has a market cap of $69.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $87.05. CRH plc has a one year low of $62.80 and a one year high of $104.23.

CRH Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a Variable dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a $0.262 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a yield of 1.4%. CRH's dividend payout ratio is presently 37.20%.

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.