Crane (NYSE:CR) Stock Price Down 1%

Shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) traded down 1% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $146.23 and last traded at $146.39. 9,951 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 96% from the average session volume of 239,529 shares. The stock had previously closed at $147.94.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Crane from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $157.00 price target on shares of Crane in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Crane from $110.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. StockNews.com upgraded Crane from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 27th. Finally, Vertical Research upgraded Crane from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Crane presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $139.50.

Crane Trading Up 0.6 %

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $138.56 and a 200 day moving average of $123.51. The stock has a market cap of $8.41 billion, a PE ratio of 39.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $565.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $546.39 million. Crane had a return on equity of 24.45% and a net margin of 13.10%. Crane’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Crane will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Crane Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be given a $0.205 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.56%. Crane’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.98%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Crane

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CR. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Crane by 143.0% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 116,920 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $10,387,000 after buying an additional 68,795 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Crane during the 4th quarter worth approximately $90,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of Crane during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,619,000. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Crane during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $679,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Crane during the 4th quarter worth approximately $472,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

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.