Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Crane (NYSE:CR - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 30,805 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $4,675,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC owned about 0.05% of Crane as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC increased its position in Crane by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 58,128 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $8,821,000 after acquiring an additional 1,388 shares during the period. Argyle Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Crane by 19.3% in the 4th quarter. Argyle Capital Management LLC now owns 1,813 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Crane in the 4th quarter valued at about $249,000. Finally, Versor Investments LP acquired a new position in shares of Crane during the 4th quarter worth approximately $558,000. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Crane Price Performance
Crane stock traded down $0.73 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $152.44. The company had a trading volume of 1,785,876 shares, compared to its average volume of 236,319. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $161.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $161.59. The company has a market cap of $8.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.30. Crane has a fifty-two week low of $128.50 and a fifty-two week high of $188.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.
Crane (NYSE:CR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.90 earnings per share. On average, equities research 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 was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This is an increase from Crane's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Crane's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.18%.
Insider Transactions at Crane
In other news, VP Alejandro Alcala sold 2,293 shares of the firm'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 completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 32,963 shares in the company, valued at $5,635,354.48. This trade represents a 6.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 2.40% of the company's stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CR shares. StockNews.com cut Crane from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, DA Davidson restated a "buy" rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Crane in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $174.80.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on Crane
About Crane
(
Free Report)
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.
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