KBC Group NV Reduces Stake in Crane (NYSE:CR)

KBC Group NV decreased its holdings in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) by 92.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,183 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 27,606 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Crane were worth $331,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Crane in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Crane in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Crane during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Crane by 81.8% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 220 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Crane in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Crane Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of CR stock opened at $169.44 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $162.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $159.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.70 billion, a PE ratio of 22.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Crane has a 1-year low of $118.48 and a 1-year high of $188.52.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.90 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Crane Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. This is an increase from Crane’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Crane’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com downgraded Crane from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on Crane from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Crane currently 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.