Treasurer of the State of North Carolina Has $27.96 Million Stock Position in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 302,200 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,900 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina’s holdings in CRH were worth $27,960,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC raised its position in CRH by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 40,843,362 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,781,004,000 after purchasing an additional 4,687,345 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of CRH by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,163,930 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,624,719,000 after buying an additional 145,101 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of CRH by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,788,918 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,553,194,000 after acquiring an additional 2,437,868 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in CRH in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,391,245,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in CRH by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,609,451 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $796,546,000 after acquiring an additional 826,758 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRH has been the subject of several analyst reports. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 price target on shares of CRH in a report on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com raised shares of CRH from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of CRH from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Loop Capital began coverage on CRH in a report on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $114.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $110.00.

CRH Stock Performance

Shares of CRH opened at $83.24 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. CRH plc has a 52 week low of $71.18 and a 52 week high of $110.97. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $96.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $96.29.

CRH Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.37 dividend. This is a positive change from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. CRH’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.66%.

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.