Banco Santander S.A. Makes New $984,000 Investment in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Banco Santander S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 10,634 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $984,000.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of CRH. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in CRH by 10.3% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,172 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $201,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in shares of CRH by 40.7% in the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 52,157 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,837,000 after buying an additional 15,094 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of CRH by 9.9% during the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,850 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $543,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the last quarter. Graypoint LLC bought a new stake in shares of CRH during the third quarter valued at approximately $292,000. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new position in CRH in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $498,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on CRH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on CRH from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. HSBC initiated coverage on shares of CRH in a report on Monday, November 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $116.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of CRH from $95.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of CRH to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of CRH from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CRH has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $108.45.

CRH Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE CRH opened at $97.34 on Monday. CRH plc has a 12-month low of $71.18 and a 12-month high of $110.97. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $99.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $95.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.11 billion, a PE ratio of 19.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30.

CRH Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.52%. CRH’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.87%.

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.