CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 12,620,000 shares, a growth of 10.1% from the July 15th total of 11,460,000 shares. Currently, 1.9% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 7,860,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.6 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CRH

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in CRH in the fourth quarter valued at $1,014,454,000. Greenhaven Associates Inc. increased its position in CRH by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 11,120,064 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $833,782,000 after purchasing an additional 91,267 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in CRH by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,618,144 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $646,188,000 after purchasing an additional 431,172 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its holdings in CRH by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 8,106,296 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $560,933,000 after acquiring an additional 937,804 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Putnam Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of CRH by 3,384.4% during the fourth quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 6,781,697 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $469,022,000 after acquiring an additional 6,587,066 shares during the last quarter. 62.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CRH Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of CRH stock traded up $0.78 on Monday, reaching $84.97. 1,989,282 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,292,542. CRH has a 1-year low of $51.59 and a 1-year high of $88.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $78.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $79.92. The stock has a market cap of $58.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.30.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The construction company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85. The company had revenue of $9.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.16 billion. On average, equities research analysts predict that CRH will post 5.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CRH Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 23rd will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 23rd. This represents a dividend yield of 1.7%. CRH’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.97%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of CRH from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley upgraded CRH from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $87.00 to $88.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Royal Bank of Canada assumed 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. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of CRH from $109.00 to $99.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of CRH from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.70.

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.