Cynosure Group LLC Sells 3,738 Shares of Crane (NYSE:CR)

Key Points

• Cynosure Group LLC cut its stake in Crane by 62.2%, now holding 2,275 shares valued at approximately $348,000.
• Crane recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.23 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.5% and a payout ratio of 15.31%.
• The stock has a current market capitalization of $11.18 billion and has seen a significant increase in earnings, reporting $1.49 EPS that exceeded estimates.

Cynosure Group LLC trimmed its holdings in Crane (NYSE:CR - Free Report) by 62.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,275 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 3,738 shares during the quarter. Cynosure Group LLC's holdings in Crane were worth $348,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Crane by 104.8% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 256 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in Crane by 31.4% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 569 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $87,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Crane by 84.7% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 687 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Crane during the first quarter valued at about $105,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its stake in Crane by 250.6% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 817 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $124,000 after buying an additional 584 shares in the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CR has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $230.00 target price (up previously from $215.00) on shares of Crane in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. DA Davidson upped their target price on Crane from $200.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Crane from $189.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Crane from $187.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Crane presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $221.50.

Crane Stock Up 1.4%

NYSE:CR traded up $2.70 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $197.06. The stock had a trading volume of 181,125 shares, compared to its average volume of 310,007. The business's 50 day moving average is $188.12 and its 200 day moving average is $169.83. Crane has a fifty-two week low of $127.04 and a fifty-two week high of $203.89. The stock has a market cap of $11.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.10, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.26. 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, July 28th. The conglomerate reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.15. Crane had a return on equity of 24.45% and a net margin of 13.10%. The firm had revenue of $577.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $567.70 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.20 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Crane will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Crane Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Crane's dividend payout ratio is presently 15.31%.

Insider Transactions at Crane

In other Crane news, SVP Jason D. Feldman sold 1,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.10, for a total transaction of $230,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 9,796 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,734,871.60. This represents a 11.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.