Carpenter Technology Co. (NYSE:CRS) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Carpenter Technology Co. (NYSE:CRS) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $168.00.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CRS. Northcoast Research raised shares of Carpenter Technology from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Carpenter Technology from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, BTIG Research set a $230.00 price target on shares of Carpenter Technology in a report on Friday, January 31st.

Carpenter Technology Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE CRS opened at $231.00 on Friday. Carpenter Technology has a 1 year low of $95.17 and a 1 year high of $234.52. The stock has a market cap of $11.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $187.15 and a 200 day moving average of $186.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 3.80 and a quick ratio of 1.92.

Carpenter Technology (NYSE:CRS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The basic materials company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.14. Carpenter Technology had a net margin of 9.34% and a return on equity of 19.88%. The business had revenue of $727.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $729.67 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.19 EPS. Carpenter Technology’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Carpenter Technology will post 6.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Carpenter Technology declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, April 24th that allows the company to repurchase $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the basic materials company to buy up to 4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Carpenter Technology Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. Carpenter Technology’s payout ratio is currently 11.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director I Martin Inglis sold 3,433 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.66, for a total transaction of $678,566.78. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,732 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,330,647.12. This trade represents a 33.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Carpenter Technology

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Carpenter Technology by 28.3% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,444,608 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $754,295,000 after purchasing an additional 979,313 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Carpenter Technology by 37.1% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,107,676 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $381,869,000 after acquiring an additional 570,441 shares in the last quarter. Egerton Capital UK LLP acquired a new position in Carpenter Technology in the 1st quarter valued at about $329,727,000. SurgoCap Partners LP grew its position in shares of Carpenter Technology by 117.6% during the fourth quarter. SurgoCap Partners LP now owns 1,442,069 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $244,734,000 after buying an additional 779,357 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Carpenter Technology by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,138,615 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $193,279,000 after buying an additional 38,411 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.03% of the company’s stock.

Carpenter Technology Company Profile

Carpenter Technology Corporation engages in the manufacture, fabrication, and distribution of specialty metals in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, Mexico, Canada, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Specialty Alloys Operations and Performance Engineered Products. The company offers specialty alloys, including titanium alloys, powder metals, stainless steels, alloy steels, and tool steels, as well as additives, and metal powders and parts.