Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 2,040 Shares of Crane (NYSE:CR)

Retirement Systems of Alabama reduced its stake in Crane (NYSE:CR - Free Report) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 130,160 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 2,040 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.23% of Crane worth $19,752,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Stonegate Investment Group LLC grew its position in shares of Crane by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 1,439 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $218,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in Crane by 1.2% during the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 7,336 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,161,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Griffin Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Crane by 0.3% in the third quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. now owns 34,038 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $5,388,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Crane by 2.8% in the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,530 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $561,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on CR shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Crane from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group increased their price target on Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. DA Davidson lifted 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.80.

Crane Stock Down 0.3 %

CR stock opened at $172.71 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $162.03 and a 200-day moving average of $159.51. Crane has a fifty-two week low of $118.48 and a fifty-two week high of $188.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.22. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.90 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Crane will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Crane Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. This is an increase 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 (DPR) is currently 18.18%.

Crane 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.

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