Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. Sells 123,830 Shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lessened its stake in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 6.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,728,987 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 123,830 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc.’s holdings in CRH were worth $149,096,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new position in CRH during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Orion Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of CRH by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC now owns 400 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. increased its position in CRH by 71.5% in the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 415 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. purchased a new stake in CRH during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. bought a new position in CRH during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

CRH Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:CRH traded up $0.86 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $72.91. The stock had a trading volume of 931,132 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,466,794. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $78.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $77.28. CRH plc has a one year low of $51.59 and a one year high of $88.00.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 10th. The construction company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.06) by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.60 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that CRH plc will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRH Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a Variable dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 24th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. This is a positive change from CRH’s previous Variable dividend of $0.23. This represents a dividend yield of 1.7%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on CRH shares. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “hold” rating and set a $82.00 target price (up from $80.00) on shares of CRH in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Vertical Research began coverage on CRH in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $105.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada started coverage on shares of CRH in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $110.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of CRH from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Finally, Stephens started coverage on CRH in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $93.11.

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.