Crane (NYSE:CR) Reaches New 1-Year High Following Dividend Announcement

Crane (NYSE:CR)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $156.96 and last traded at $156.83, with a volume of 79958 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $153.93.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Wednesday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be given a $0.205 dividend. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Crane’s payout ratio is 21.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Crane from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com raised Crane from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 27th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Crane from $157.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Crane from $120.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Vertical Research upgraded Crane from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.50.

Crane Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $146.10 and a 200 day moving average of $135.12. The stock has a market cap of $8.87 billion, a PE ratio of 41.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.80.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $565.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $546.39 million. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.25 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Crane

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Crane by 150.6% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 218 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Crane during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of Crane by 40.9% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 341 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Crane by 29.9% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 487 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management purchased a new stake in Crane during the 4th quarter worth approximately $90,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% 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.