Sit Investment Associates Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Sit Investment Associates Inc. lessened its holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 42.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 13,325 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 9,900 shares during the quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc.’s holdings in CRH were worth $1,233,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CRH. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of CRH in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its holdings in CRH by 214.3% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 352 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in CRH during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators lifted its position in shares of CRH by 87.7% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 505 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Spire Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of CRH in the 4th quarter valued at $57,000. 62.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRH has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of CRH from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com upgraded CRH from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 price objective on CRH in a report on Friday, February 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CRH has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $109.64.

CRH Trading Down 6.6 %

NYSE:CRH opened at $80.63 on Monday. CRH plc has a 12-month low of $71.18 and a 12-month high of $110.97. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $98.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $96.71. The firm has a market cap of $54.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.13, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30.

CRH Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.37 dividend. This is a boost from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. CRH’s payout ratio is currently 22.66%.

CRH 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.