Carpenter Technology Co. (NYSE:CRS) Shares Sold by Ensign Peak Advisors Inc

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc reduced its stake in Carpenter Technology Co. (NYSE:CRS) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 23,634 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,005 shares during the quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in Carpenter Technology were worth $4,011,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CRS. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Carpenter Technology by 471.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 101,745 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $16,236,000 after acquiring an additional 83,930 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Carpenter Technology in the 4th quarter worth approximately $419,000. Radnor Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Carpenter Technology in the 4th quarter worth approximately $204,000. Burney Co. lifted its holdings in Carpenter Technology by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Burney Co. now owns 2,045 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $347,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Carpenter Technology during the 4th quarter worth approximately $511,000. 92.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Carpenter Technology Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:CRS opened at $228.18 on Thursday. Carpenter Technology Co. has a 52 week low of $95.17 and a 52 week high of $231.96. The company’s 50 day moving average is $185.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $186.24. The company has a current ratio of 3.80, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company has a market cap of $11.36 billion, a PE ratio of 43.05, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.33.

Carpenter Technology (NYSE:CRS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The basic materials company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.14. Carpenter Technology had a net margin of 9.34% and a return on equity of 19.88%. The company had revenue of $727.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $729.67 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Carpenter Technology Co. will post 6.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Carpenter Technology Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. Carpenter Technology’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.33%.

Carpenter Technology declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, April 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the basic materials company to purchase up to 4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on CRS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Carpenter Technology from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. BTIG Research set a $230.00 target price on shares of Carpenter Technology in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Carpenter Technology from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Carpenter Technology

In other Carpenter Technology news, Director I Martin Inglis sold 3,433 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.66, for a total value of $678,566.78. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,732 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,330,647.12. This represents a 33.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Carpenter Technology Profile

Carpenter Technology Corporation engages in the manufacture, fabrication, and distribution of specialty metals in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, Mexico, Canada, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Specialty Alloys Operations and Performance Engineered Products. The company offers specialty alloys, including titanium alloys, powder metals, stainless steels, alloy steels, and tool steels, as well as additives, and metal powders and parts.