Crane (NYSE:CR) Reaches New 52-Week High - Here's Why

Crane (NYSE:CR - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $178.90 and last traded at $178.90, with a volume of 399 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $176.00.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Crane from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Crane from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $157.33.

Crane Trading Up 1.6 %

The stock has a market cap of $10.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.81. The stock's 50-day moving average is $156.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $150.33. 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 - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The conglomerate reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.06. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. The business had revenue of $597.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $594.45 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.03 EPS. The business's revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current year.

Crane Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.205 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. Crane's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.06%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Crane

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Crane by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 183,725 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $29,080,000 after acquiring an additional 8,899 shares during the last quarter. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL lifted its stake in shares of Crane by 27.9% in the 3rd quarter. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL now owns 4,495 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $708,000 after purchasing an additional 981 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Crane by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 29,789 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $4,715,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Crane in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $211,000. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. increased its position in shares of Crane by 285.1% during the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,340 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $212,000 after purchasing an additional 992 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Crane

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.