Axiom Investors LLC DE Raises Stock Holdings in Crane $CR

Key Points

• Axiom Investors LLC DE increased its stake in Crane by 9.2% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 101,998 shares valued at about $18.8 million.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted or initiated positions in Crane, and overall 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutions.
• Crane reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.65 versus the $1.44 estimate and revenue up 24.9% year over year; analysts currently have a Buy consensus with a $226.33 price target.

Axiom Investors LLC DE lifted its holdings in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR - Free Report) by 9.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 101,998 shares of the conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 8,598 shares during the quarter. Axiom Investors LLC DE owned 0.18% of Crane worth $18,811,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CR. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Crane by 289,020.7% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 7,855,409 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,448,773,000 after acquiring an additional 7,852,692 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Crane during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $198,509,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its position in Crane by 114.8% in the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 439,157 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $80,866,000 after buying an additional 234,681 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in Crane by 116.2% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 401,596 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $73,950,000 after buying an additional 215,815 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Crane by 84.1% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 431,048 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $78,300,000 after buying an additional 196,917 shares during the period. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CR has been the topic of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Crane from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $200.00 to $215.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered Crane from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings lowered Crane from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $235.00 price target on shares of Crane in a report on Monday, June 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $226.33.

Crane Price Performance

NYSE:CR opened at $200.87 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.12. Crane has a 52-week low of $159.58 and a 52-week high of $214.31. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $181.01 and a 200 day moving average of $187.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Crane (NYSE:CR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.21. Crane had a return on equity of 24.45% and a net margin of 13.10%.The company had revenue of $696.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $672.74 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.39 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 24.9% on a year-over-year basis. Crane has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-6.850 EPS. On average, research 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 will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a dividend of $0.255 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Crane's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.35%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Susan D. Lynch purchased 150 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $177.38 per share, for a total transaction of $26,607.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 370 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,630.60. This trade represents a 68.18% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 2.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Crane Profile

Crane Co, headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, is a diversified manufacturer of engineered industrial products serving customers around the world. The company operates through two primary segments: Aerospace & Electronics and Engineered Materials. Its Aerospace & Electronics division designs and produces valves, fittings, manifolds, and filtration systems for aircraft fuel, hydraulics, and environmental control systems. The Engineered Materials segment focuses on advanced polymers, heat exchangers, and specialized composite solutions for industries including chemical processing, semiconductor manufacturing, and power generation.

With roots dating back to its founding in 1855 in Chicago by R.T.

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