Crane (NYSE:CR) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Friday morning.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on CR. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Crane from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.80.

Crane Stock Performance

NYSE CR opened at $171.83 on Friday. The company has a market cap 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 debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.18. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $161.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $160.14. Crane has a fifty-two week low of $118.48 and a fifty-two week high of $188.52.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last released its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company posted $0.90 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Crane will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Crane Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Crane

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CR. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Crane during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Crane during the 3rd quarter worth $37,000. Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Crane by 487.8% during the 4th 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. Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Crane during the 3rd quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in Crane during the 3rd quarter valued at about $56,000. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.