Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC Grows Holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC boosted its position in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 37.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 344,579 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 93,095 shares during the quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC’s holdings in CRH were worth $23,831,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. III Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of CRH by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. III Capital Management now owns 32,000 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,213,000 after buying an additional 3,500 shares during the last quarter. L1 Capital International Pty Ltd bought a new position in CRH during the 4th quarter valued at $14,021,000. Putnam Investments LLC grew its holdings in CRH by 3,384.4% during the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 6,781,697 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $469,022,000 after acquiring an additional 6,587,066 shares in the last quarter. CTF Capital Management LP acquired a new position in CRH during the 4th quarter worth $2,594,000. Finally, Junto Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of CRH in the 4th quarter worth about $46,825,000. 62.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRH has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup upped their price target on CRH from $101.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of CRH from $89.70 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of CRH from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $82.00 price objective (up previously from $80.00) on shares of CRH in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of CRH from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $83.28.

CRH Stock Performance

Shares of CRH traded down $1.25 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $78.17. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 10,458,791 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,550,910. CRH plc has a fifty-two week low of $48.91 and a fifty-two week high of $88.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $80.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.98.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 10th. The construction company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.60 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that CRH plc will post 5.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CRH Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a Variable dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 23rd. This is an increase from CRH’s previous Variable dividend of $0.23. This represents a yield of 1.7%.

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.