84,942 Shares in Crane (NYSE:CR) Purchased by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 84,942 shares of the conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $12,890,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in shares of Crane by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 14,113 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,142,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Crane during the 4th quarter worth about $4,675,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in Crane by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 583 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $89,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Crane by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 58,128 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $8,821,000 after buying an additional 1,388 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Argyle Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Crane by 19.3% in the 4th quarter. Argyle Capital Management LLC now owns 1,813 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Crane Stock Performance

NYSE CR opened at $154.72 on Thursday. Crane has a fifty-two week low of $128.50 and a fifty-two week high of $188.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.30. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $161.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $161.65. 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 results on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.07. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.90 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Crane will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Crane Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.59%. This is an increase from Crane’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Crane’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.18%.

Insider Activity

In other Crane news, VP Alejandro Alcala sold 2,293 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.96, for a total transaction of $392,011.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 32,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,635,354.48. This trade represents a 6.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CR. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Crane in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Crane from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.80.

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.