CRH (NYSE:CRH) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of CRH (NYSE:CRH) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, October 13th, Benzinga reports. The firm set an “overweight” rating and a $115.00 price target on the construction company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target would indicate a potential upside of 32.96% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on CRH. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of CRH from $159.50 to $126.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their target price on shares of CRH from $157.00 to $110.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on CRH from $165.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on CRH in a research report on Friday, September 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $139.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of CRH in a research note on Monday, August 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $137.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $126.50.

CRH Stock Performance

CRH stock traded up $0.72 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $86.49. 4,611,061 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,944,249. CRH has a 52-week low of $78.62 and a 52-week high of $131.55. The stock has a market cap of $57.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.31. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $87.32 and its 200 day moving average is $104.64.

CRH (NYSE:CRH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The construction company reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $10.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion. CRH had a net margin of 9.93% and a return on equity of 15.76%. CRH’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.94 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that CRH will post 5.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CRH

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CRH. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of CRH by 74.7% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 5,965,814 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $627,126,000 after acquiring an additional 2,550,178 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in CRH by 441.4% during the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,468,493 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $154,218,000 after buying an additional 1,197,255 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in CRH in the 1st quarter worth approximately $79,124,000. Interval Partners LP bought a new position in CRH during the 4th quarter worth about $68,127,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in CRH by 27.9% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,186,541 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $228,994,000 after purchasing an additional 477,242 shares during the last quarter. 62.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CRH Company Profile

CRH plc is a global building materials company that supplies products and solutions used in residential, commercial and infrastructure construction. Its activities include the production and distribution of aggregates, asphalt, ready-mixed concrete, cement and other construction materials, as well as value-added products such as precast concrete, architectural products and site-development solutions.

The company serves customers across North America and Europe, including contractors, construction companies, infrastructure developers, distributors and public-sector organizations.