Aviva PLC Invests $538,000 in Crane (NYSE:CR)

Aviva PLC bought a new position in Crane (NYSE:CR - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,544 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $538,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CR. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in shares of Crane by 487.8% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 241 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Crane by 69.1% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 372 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Crane in the 3rd quarter valued at about $86,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in Crane by 17.8% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 583 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in shares of Crane in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $101,000. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Crane

In other Crane news, VP Alejandro Alcala sold 2,293 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.96, for a total value of $392,011.28. Following the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 2.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Crane Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CR traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $141.66. The stock had a trading volume of 55,814 shares, compared to its average volume of 259,229. 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 1 year low of $127.04 and a 1 year high of $188.52. The company has a market capitalization of $8.13 billion, a PE ratio of 18.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.31. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $155.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $160.77.

Crane (NYSE:CR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 quarter last year, the business earned $0.90 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current fiscal 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 0.65%. This is an increase from Crane's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Crane's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on CR shares. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. StockNews.com lowered Crane from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $186.00 price objective on shares of Crane and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Crane in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Crane from $170.00 to $144.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $170.40.

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.