Levin Capital Strategies L.P. Purchases Shares of 1,477 Crane (NYSE:CR)

Levin Capital Strategies L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,477 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $214,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Covestor Ltd raised its position in Crane by 150.6% during the first 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 position in shares of Crane in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Crane by 29.9% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 487 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Crane during the second quarter worth approximately $123,000. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Crane during the second quarter worth approximately $201,000. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Crane Trading Up 1.5 %

NYSE:CR opened at $144.32 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $149.89 and its 200-day moving average is $142.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Crane has a 12 month low of $82.57 and a 12 month high of $162.34. The firm has a market cap of $8.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.77.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The conglomerate reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $581.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $568.33 million. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current year.

Crane Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.205 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Crane’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on CR shares. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Crane from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Crane from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. UBS Group increased their price objective on Crane from $120.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Crane from $157.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.00.

Crane 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.