Crane (NYSE:CR) Reaches New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Crane (NYSE:CR) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on the stock from $187.00 to $226.00. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has a buy rating on the stock. Crane traded as high as $191.00 and last traded at $189.03, with a volume of 47150 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $185.99.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Crane from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Crane in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Crane from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Crane from $190.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $197.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Jason D. Feldman sold 1,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.10, for a total value of $230,230.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,796 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,734,871.60. This represents a 11.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Huntington National Bank increased its position in shares of Crane by 487.8% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 241 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Crane by 104.8% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 256 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Westpac Banking Corp bought a new position in Crane during the first quarter valued at approximately $76,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in Crane by 31.4% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 569 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in Crane by 17.8% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 583 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $89,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Crane Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $160.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $161.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.69, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.24.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The conglomerate reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.10. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. The business had revenue of $557.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $546.93 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.22 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Crane will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Crane Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. Crane’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.94%.

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.