Traders Purchase Large Volume of Put Options on CRH (NYSE:CRH)

CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders purchased 10,262 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 64% compared to the typical daily volume of 6,253 put options.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CRH

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRH. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in CRH during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CRH in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in shares of CRH by 214.3% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 352 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CRH in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. 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. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 price target on CRH in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised CRH from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One 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 target price of $109.25.

CRH Stock Performance

NYSE CRH traded up $3.90 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $98.53. 3,946,329 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,700,940. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.69, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. CRH has a 12-month low of $71.18 and a 12-month high of $110.97. The business has a 50 day moving average of $99.13 and a 200-day moving average of $95.97.

CRH Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. This is an increase from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. CRH’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.87%.

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.