What total number of shares were repurchased, at what average price, and how will this affect CRH’s earnings per share and overall float?

Answer – Shares repurchased & price, and likely impact on EPS and float

The regulatory filing does not disclose the exact figures in the excerpt you supplied – the fields for “Aggregate number of ordinary shares acquired” and “Daily volume‑weighted average price paid” are left blank. Therefore I cannot quote a specific head‑count or price line for the buy‑back.

How a typical CRH share‑repurchase would affect the capital‑structure

• Float: Every share that is cancelled shrinks the company’s publicly‑traded pool (“float”). Even a modest repurchase – for example, cancelling ~2–3 percent of the total outstanding shares – nudges the free‑float lower enough to make the remaining shares relatively tighter‑supplied. In a low‑float environment the price can react more sharply to any new demand, and short‑sale coverage may become more constrained.

• Earnings per share (EPS): EPS is calculated as net income ÷ shares outstanding. When shares are removed, the denominator falls while the numerator (net income) stays unchanged, so EPS rises automatically. The magnitude of the uplift is roughly proportional to the size of the cancellation. If CRH were to retire 2 % of its shares, EPS would increase by about 2 %‑‑all else equal – a boost that can be “perceived” by investors as an earnings‑quality signal, especially when the buy‑back price is below the current on‑balance‑sheet cost of equity.

• Market dynamics: Because the repurchased shares are bought on the open market (through BNP Paribas Securities) and then redeemed, the transaction can be viewed as a “open‑market buy‑back”. The daily‑volume‑weighted average price you will see in the full filing will tell you whether CRH is buying at a discount to the recent 5‑day VWAP – a key metric for assessing the immediacy of the earnings‑boost. If the average price is comfortably below the prevailing market level, the buy‑back not only improves EPS but also signals that management believes the stock is undervalued, which often draws short‑term buying pressure from value‑oriented traders.

Actionable take‑aways (given the data gap)

1. Check the full filing – locate the exact “Aggregate number of ordinary shares acquired” and the “Daily volume‑weighted average price paid” to quantify the float reduction and price discount.
   
2. Model EPS impact – take CRH’s reported net income from the latest quarter, divide by the current outstanding shares, then recalculate using the reduced share count to see the precise EPS uplift.
   
3. Technical implication – A float‑shrink of >5 % often generates a noticeable price‑support zone; monitor the next 1–2 weeks for a break‑out above the recent consolidation range, especially if the buy‑back was executed near a price swing low.
   
4. Risk – If the float reduction is modest (≤1 % of total shares) the EPS boost will be marginal and may already be priced‑in. In that case, the primary driver of any price move will be the signaling effect (management confidence) rather than a mechanical supply‑shortage.

Once the exact numbers are known, you can plug them into the simple EPS‑boost formula and assess whether the anticipated uplift is material enough to justify a short‑‑to‑medium‑term bullish tilt on CRH Plc.