Crown (NYSE:CCK) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Crown (NYSE:CCK) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on CCK. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $135.00 target price (up from $130.00) on shares of Crown in a report on Friday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Crown in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Crown in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Crown in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on Crown from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.86.

Crown Stock Down 2.8%

Shares of CCK opened at $108.14 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.03. Crown has a 52 week low of $75.98 and a 52 week high of $116.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.98, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $108.04 and a 200-day moving average of $100.88.

Crown (NYSE:CCK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.05. Crown had a return on equity of 26.68% and a net margin of 5.97%.The business had revenue of $3.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.59 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Crown has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.900-8.300 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.700-1.800 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Crown will post 6.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Crown Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from Crown’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Crown’s payout ratio is currently 16.33%.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Djalma Novaes, Jr. sold 29,734 shares of Crown stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.80, for a total value of $3,413,463.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 88,052 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,108,369.60. This trade represents a 25.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Timothy J. Donahue sold 29,024 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $3,047,520.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 411,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,213,380. The trade was a 6.59% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 101,988 shares of company stock valued at $10,964,122. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Crown

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Crown during the third quarter valued at about $43,417,000. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of Crown by 73.3% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 72,075 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,962,000 after acquiring an additional 30,488 shares during the period. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc purchased a new position in Crown during the third quarter valued at approximately $15,472,000. Vinva Investment Management Ltd grew its stake in Crown by 152.9% during the second quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 194,348 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $20,393,000 after acquiring an additional 117,494 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenland Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Crown during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $589,000. Institutional investors own 90.93% of the company’s stock.

About Crown

Crown Holdings, Inc is a leading global supplier of rigid packaging products for consumer goods markets. The company designs, manufactures and sells metal packaging for beverage, food, household, personal care and specialty products. Its portfolio includes aluminum and steel beverage cans, steel food cans, aluminum aerosols, metal closures and ends, offering customers end-to-end solutions from design and prototyping to large-scale production.

Founded in 1919 as the Crown Cork & Seal Company, Crown has grown through strategic acquisitions and investments in advanced manufacturing technologies.