Crane (NYSE:CR) Sees Large Volume Increase – Still a Buy?

Shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) saw strong trading volume on Friday . 171,502 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 21% from the previous session’s volume of 216,177 shares.The stock last traded at $162.94 and had previously closed at $162.91.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Crane from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $166.80.

Crane Trading Up 0.1 %

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $164.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $158.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.22.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The conglomerate reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $597.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $594.45 million. Crane had a return on equity of 24.45% and a net margin of 13.10%. Crane’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.03 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Crane Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a dividend of $0.205 per share. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Crane’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.06%.

Institutional Trading of Crane

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CR. Stonegate Investment Group LLC raised its position in Crane by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 1,439 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $218,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Crane by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,975 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,845,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp increased its position in Crane by 1.2% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 7,336 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,161,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Crane by 0.3% in the third quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. now owns 34,038 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $5,388,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Crane by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,530 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $561,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.