Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Has $665.72 Million Stock Holdings in CRH plc (NYSE:CRH)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of CRH plc (NYSE:CRH) by 12.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,195,372 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 820,479 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s holdings in CRH were worth $665,716,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CRH. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of CRH in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in CRH by 214.3% in the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 352 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the period. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of CRH in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its position in shares of CRH by 87.7% during the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 505 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the period. Finally, Spire Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of CRH during the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. Institutional investors own 62.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of CRH from $118.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Berenberg Bank set a $120.00 price objective 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. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on CRH from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $109.64.

CRH Stock Up 2.0 %

NYSE:CRH opened at $90.64 on Thursday. CRH plc has a twelve month low of $71.18 and a twelve month high of $110.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $99.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $96.74.

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 given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This is a positive change from CRH’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. CRH’s dividend payout ratio is 15.51%.

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.