Wealthfront Advisers LLC Takes $45.13 Million Position in Crane (NYSE:CR)

Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 297,376 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $45,127,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC owned about 0.52% of Crane at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Crane in the third quarter worth about $37,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp acquired a new position in Crane in the 3rd quarter valued at $45,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in Crane during the third quarter valued at about $56,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Crane by 69.1% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 372 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Crane in the third quarter worth about $86,000. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CR. StockNews.com cut Crane from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Crane from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Crane news, VP Alejandro Alcala sold 2,293 shares of Crane stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.96, for a total transaction of $392,011.28. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 32,963 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,635,354.48. The trade was a 6.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 2.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Crane Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE CR opened at $153.78 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $161.86 and a 200-day moving average of $161.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.30. Crane has a 52 week low of $127.82 and a 52 week high of $188.52. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.90 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current year.

Crane Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This is a boost from Crane’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Crane’s payout ratio is 18.18%.

Crane Company Profile

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.