Crane (NYSE:CR) Sets New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Crane (NYSE:CR - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $191.78 and last traded at $191.19, with a volume of 55078 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $189.89.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CR has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group set a $215.00 target price on shares of Crane and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Crane from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Crane in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Crane from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Crane from $187.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $197.75.

Crane Trading Up 0.0%

The stock has a market cap of $10.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.24. The business's 50 day moving average is $173.78 and its 200 day moving average is $162.27. 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 (NYSE:CR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The conglomerate reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.10. Crane had a return on equity of 24.45% and a net margin of 13.10%. The business had revenue of $557.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $546.93 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.22 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Crane will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Crane Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. Crane's payout ratio is currently 15.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Crane

In related news, SVP Jason D. Feldman sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.10, for a total value of $230,230.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,796 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,734,871.60. This trade represents a 11.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.12% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Crane

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Crane by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,695,440 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $712,533,000 after acquiring an additional 14,373 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Crane by 16.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,455,854 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $372,676,000 after purchasing an additional 355,765 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Crane by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,425,015 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $216,246,000 after purchasing an additional 138,279 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Crane by 1.3% in the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 989,002 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $151,496,000 after purchasing an additional 12,505 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Crane in the fourth quarter valued at about $144,961,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company's stock.

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.