Crane (NYSE:CR) Stake Lowered by Stephens Inc. AR

Stephens Inc. AR reduced its stake in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,654 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 204 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Crane were worth $554,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Crane in the third quarter worth $28,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Crane in the third quarter worth $37,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp acquired a new position in Crane during the 3rd quarter worth $45,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in Crane during the 3rd quarter worth $56,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in Crane by 69.1% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 372 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Crane Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of CR opened at $171.83 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $161.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $160.14. Crane has a 52 week low of $118.48 and a 52 week high of $188.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.07. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.90 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Crane will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Crane Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. This is a boost from Crane’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Crane’s payout ratio is presently 18.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Crane from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Crane from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.80.

Insider Activity at Crane

In other Crane news, VP Alejandro Alcala sold 2,293 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.96, for a total transaction of $392,011.28. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 32,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,635,354.48. This represents a 6.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Crane Company Profile

Crane Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells engineered industrial products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Continental Europe, and internationally. The company operates in three segments: Aerospace & Electronics, Process Flow Technologies, and Engineered Materials.