Capital World Investors Has $372.68 Million Stock Holdings in Crane (NYSE:CR)

Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Crane (NYSE:CR - Free Report) by 16.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,455,854 shares of the conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 355,765 shares during the period. Capital World Investors owned about 4.29% of Crane worth $372,676,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Crane by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 15,625 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $2,371,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Crane by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 1,455 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Crane by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 1,439 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $218,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Crane by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,975 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $2,845,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in Crane by 17.8% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 583 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Crane from $170.00 to $144.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $186.00 price target on Crane and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. 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. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Crane from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $170.40.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Alejandro Alcala sold 2,293 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.96, for a total value of $392,011.28. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 32,963 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,635,354.48. The trade was 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. Insiders own 2.12% of the company's stock.

Crane Trading Down 0.7 %

CR traded down $1.03 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $148.40. The stock had a trading volume of 464,421 shares, compared to its average volume of 262,482. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $151.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $160.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.31. Crane has a 52 week low of $127.04 and a 52 week high of $188.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Crane (NYSE:CR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.07. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.90 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current year.

Crane Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.23 dividend. This is a boost from Crane's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. Crane's payout ratio is currently 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.