Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. Lowers Holdings in Crane (NYSE:CR)

Key Points

• Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. reduced its holdings in Crane by 33.2%, now owning about 50,400 shares valued at approximately $7.72 million.
• Multiple institutional investors have increased their positions in Crane, with Golden State Wealth Management raising its stake by 104.8% in the first quarter.
• Crane recently reported earnings of $1.49 per share, surpassing expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.23, reflecting a 0.5% yield.

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. lowered its position in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR - Free Report) by 33.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 50,400 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 25,000 shares during the quarter. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. owned about 0.09% of Crane worth $7,720,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Crane by 104.8% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 256 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Westpac Banking Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Crane during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $76,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in Crane by 31.4% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 569 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in Crane by 84.7% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 687 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 315 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new position in Crane during the 1st quarter worth $105,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Crane Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE CR opened at $188.86 on Friday. Crane has a 12 month low of $127.04 and a 12 month high of $203.89. The company has a market cap of $10.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $189.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $170.36.

Crane (NYSE:CR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The conglomerate reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.15. Crane had a return on equity of 24.45% and a net margin of 13.10%. The business had revenue of $577.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $567.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.20 earnings per share. Crane's revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current year.

Crane Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Crane's dividend payout ratio is currently 15.31%.

Insider Transactions at Crane

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

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Crane (NYSE:CR - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.