Quarry LP Purchases 584 Shares of Crane (NYSE:CR)

Quarry LP raised its position in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) by 250.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 817 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 584 shares during the quarter. Quarry LP’s holdings in Crane were worth $124,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aviva PLC bought a new stake in Crane during the fourth quarter valued at about $538,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Crane during the fourth quarter worth about $12,890,000. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in Crane by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 135,191 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,515,000 after buying an additional 2,953 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Crane by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 323,272 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $49,057,000 after buying an additional 8,552 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia acquired a new stake in Crane during the fourth quarter worth about $744,000. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Crane news, VP Alejandro Alcala sold 2,293 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.96, for a total value of $392,011.28. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 32,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,635,354.48. This represents a 6.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Crane Price Performance

Crane stock opened at $148.36 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.18. The firm has a market cap of $8.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.31. The business’s fifty day moving average is $150.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $160.07. Crane has a 52 week low of $127.04 and a 52 week high of $188.52.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $0.90 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Crane will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Crane Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. Crane’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on CR shares. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Crane in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $186.00 price objective on Crane and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. StockNews.com downgraded Crane from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Crane from $170.00 to $144.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.40.

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.