Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Sells 642 Shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,815 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 642 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in CRH were worth $908,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in CRH by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,562,962 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $144,605,000 after acquiring an additional 114,072 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in CRH by 22.1% during the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 32,557 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,012,000 after acquiring an additional 5,889 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in CRH by 31.8% during the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 23,253 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,151,000 after acquiring an additional 5,610 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in CRH by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 72,778 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $6,733,000 after acquiring an additional 12,076 shares during the period. Finally, C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors bought a new position in CRH during the 4th quarter worth $2,335,000. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. HSBC assumed coverage on CRH in a research note on Monday, November 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $116.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on CRH from $95.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Citigroup decreased their price target on CRH from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded CRH to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded CRH from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $108.45.

CRH Stock Up 6.8 %

NYSE CRH opened at $102.81 on Thursday. CRH plc has a twelve month low of $71.18 and a twelve month high of $110.97. The company has a market cap of $69.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. The business’s fifty day moving average is $98.91 and its 200 day moving average is $95.66.

CRH Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. CRH’s payout ratio is presently 20.87%.

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.