CRH PLC has announced a share buyback (SBB) program of up to $6 billion, to be completed by 2030. While we expect the combined impact of the Arcosa acquisition and the SBB program to temporarily increase leverage, the company's long-term financial policy as well as sound free cash flow generation prospects support our ratings. In our updated base-case scenario we expect S&P Global Ratings-adjusted debt to EBITDA will increase to 2.8x-2.9x in 2026, before moderating to 2.4x-2.6x in 2027 (from 2.1x on a rolling 12-month basis as of Sept. 30, 2026). While this results in a tighter headroom under our downside threshold of 3.0x, we anticipate credit metrics will start to recover in 2028 based on management's commitment to deleveraging
