KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Takes Position in Crane (NYSE:CR)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 9,900 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $1,502,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Crane by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 446,500 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $67,758,000 after purchasing an additional 5,250 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Crane by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 413,723 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $62,782,000 after buying an additional 29,538 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Crane by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 323,272 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $49,057,000 after buying an additional 8,552 shares during the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Crane in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,127,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in Crane by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 135,191 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,515,000 after acquiring an additional 2,953 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on CR shares. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Crane in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded Crane from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.80.

Crane Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of CR stock opened at $152.27 on Friday. Crane has a 52-week low of $128.50 and a 52-week high of $188.52. The stock has a market cap of $8.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.17, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $162.32 and its 200-day moving average is $161.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 last year, the business earned $0.90 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current year.

Crane Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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%. This is a boost from Crane’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Crane’s payout ratio is 18.18%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Crane

In other news, VP Alejandro Alcala sold 2,293 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.96, for a total transaction of $392,011.28. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 32,963 shares in the company, valued at $5,635,354.48. The trade was a 6.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.40% 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.