Crane (NYSE:CR) Stock Price Up 5% on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) rose 5% on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $160.26 and last traded at $159.98. Approximately 225,293 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 2% from the average daily volume of 230,720 shares. The stock had previously closed at $152.39.

The conglomerate reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $597.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $594.45 million. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS.

Crane Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.205 per share. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Crane’s dividend payout ratio is 18.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on CR shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Crane from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Crane from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Crane currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $157.33.

Institutional Trading of Crane

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CR. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Crane by 103.3% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,348,451 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $182,216,000 after buying an additional 685,230 shares during the period. Select Equity Group L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Crane in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $21,159,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Crane in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $16,205,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC grew its stake in shares of Crane by 13.0% in the 1st quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 727,846 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $98,354,000 after buying an additional 83,938 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Crane by 673.2% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 82,172 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $11,913,000 after buying an additional 71,544 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Crane Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $154.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $148.55. 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 $9.27 billion, a PE ratio of 35.68, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.77.

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.