Crane (NYSE:CR) Shares Sold by Los Angeles Capital Management LLC

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Crane (NYSE:CR) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,289 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 89 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Crane were worth $954,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CR. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Crane by 390.3% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,890 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,832,000 after buying an additional 14,241 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in shares of Crane by 3.6% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 11,071 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,751,000 after buying an additional 380 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Crane by 40.0% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 30,296 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,599,000 after purchasing an additional 8,658 shares during the last quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Crane during the third quarter valued at $1,897,000. Finally, Consolidated Planning Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Crane during the third quarter valued at $211,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Crane

In related news, VP Alejandro Alcala sold 2,293 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.96, for a total transaction of $392,011.28. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 32,963 shares in the company, valued at $5,635,354.48. This represents a 6.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on CR. DA Davidson upped their target price on Crane from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com lowered Crane from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.80.

Crane Stock Performance

Shares of CR stock opened at $162.95 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $9.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.58, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.25. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $161.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $161.52. Crane has a fifty-two week low of $121.07 and a fifty-two week high of $188.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.07. Crane had a return on equity of 24.45% and a net margin of 13.10%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.90 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Crane will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Crane Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This is an increase from Crane’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Crane’s dividend payout ratio is 18.18%.

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.