ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. Makes New Investment in Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CCK)

Key Points

• ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired a new stake in Crown Holdings, Inc., purchasing 6,165 shares valued at approximately $550,000.
• Several institutional investors, including Federated Hermes Inc. and APG Asset Management N.V., significantly increased their stakes in Crown during the fourth quarter, reflecting a growing interest in the company.
• Crown Holdings announced a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, set to be paid on August 21st, representing an annualized yield of 1.0%.

ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired a new stake in shares of Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CCK - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 6,165 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $550,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CCK. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in shares of Crown by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 14,486 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,198,000 after buying an additional 746 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Crown by 14.4% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 335,672 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $27,757,000 after buying an additional 42,182 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its stake in shares of Crown by 90.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 78,942 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $6,528,000 after buying an additional 37,428 shares during the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. boosted its holdings in shares of Crown by 251.0% during the fourth quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 90,075 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $7,193,000 after purchasing an additional 64,413 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Crown during the fourth quarter worth about $8,466,000. 90.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Crown Stock Performance

Shares of CCK stock traded up $0.82 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $101.60. 849,607 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,394,398. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.82 billion, a PE ratio of 21.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.74. Crown Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.98 and a 12 month high of $109.48. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $103.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $94.74.

Crown (NYSE:CCK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.10 billion. Crown had a net margin of 4.64% and a return on equity of 27.15%. Crown's quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.81 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Crown Holdings, Inc. will post 6.96 EPS for the current year.

Crown Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 7th will be paid a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 7th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Crown's payout ratio is presently 21.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Crown

In other Crown news, CAO Gerard H. Gifford sold 8,222 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.93, for a total value of $846,290.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 122,585 shares in the company, valued at $12,617,674.05. The trade was a 6.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Christy L. Kalaus sold 2,130 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.41, for a total transaction of $211,743.30. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 4,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $447,345. The trade was a 32.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CCK. Loop Capital increased their target price on shares of Crown from $129.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Crown from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Crown from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Crown from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Crown from $110.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $120.67.

Crown Company Profile

Crown Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the packaging business in the United States and internationally. It operates through Americas Beverage, European Beverage, Asia Pacific, and Transit Packaging segments. The company manufactures and sells recyclable aluminum beverage cans and ends, glass bottles, steel crowns, aluminum caps, non-beverage cans, and aerosol cans and closures.