Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CCK) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CCK - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,690,000 shares, a growth of 20.6% from the January 31st total of 4,720,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,350,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.2 days. Currently, 4.8% of the company's shares are sold short.

Crown Stock Performance

Shares of CCK traded down $0.50 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $91.24. 2,071,304 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,385,551. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $86.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $89.55. Crown has a 52-week low of $70.84 and a 52-week high of $98.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.73 billion, a PE ratio of 25.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Crown (NYSE:CCK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.08. Crown had a net margin of 3.59% and a return on equity of 25.12%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Crown will post 6.96 earnings per share for the current year.

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Crown Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.14%. This is a boost from Crown's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Crown's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on CCK shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Crown from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley raised Crown from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $109.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Mizuho cut their price target on Crown from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com raised Crown from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Crown from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $106.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CCK. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Crown by 10,138.8% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,105,118 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $256,762,000 after buying an additional 3,074,791 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Crown during the fourth quarter worth about $113,568,000. Metropolis Capital Ltd raised its holdings in Crown by 68.7% during the fourth quarter. Metropolis Capital Ltd now owns 2,456,357 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $203,116,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000,605 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC acquired a new stake in Crown in the fourth quarter valued at about $66,732,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in Crown by 125.0% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,352,711 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $129,698,000 after purchasing an additional 751,530 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.93% of the company's stock.

Crown Company Profile

Crown Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the packaging business in the United States and internationally. It operates through Americas Beverage, European Beverage, Asia Pacific, and Transit Packaging segments. The company manufactures and sells recyclable aluminum beverage cans and ends, glass bottles, steel crowns, aluminum caps, non-beverage cans, and aerosol cans and closures.