VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Invests $7.70 Million in Carpenter Technology Corporation $CRS

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems acquired 12,482 shares of Carpenter Technology worth approximately $7.70 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors own 92.03% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with an average “Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $577.25, despite several recent target reductions.
• Carpenter Technology shares opened at $458.68, down 3.5%, while the company reported quarterly EPS of $3.23, exceeding estimates, and revenue growth of 12.6% year over year. Insiders have sold roughly $53.1 million in shares over the past 90 days.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in Carpenter Technology Corporation (NYSE:CRS - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 12,482 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $7,699,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Carpenter Technology in the second quarter worth $2,978,000. Kinetic Partners Management LP purchased a new position in Carpenter Technology in the second quarter worth about $19,122,000. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Carpenter Technology during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,095,000. Covestor Ltd increased its position in Carpenter Technology by 334.3% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,492 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,099,000 after acquiring an additional 2,688 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in shares of Carpenter Technology by 21.4% during the 2nd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 17,240 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $10,634,000 after acquiring an additional 3,040 shares during the last quarter. 92.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on CRS shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Carpenter Technology from $425.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Zacks Research upgraded Carpenter Technology from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. KeyCorp cut their price target on Carpenter Technology from $644.00 to $608.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Carpenter Technology from $680.00 to $600.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Carpenter Technology in a research note on Monday, August 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $577.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Carpenter Technology news, Director Ramin Younessi sold 438 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $493.15, for a total transaction of $215,999.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,953 shares in the company, valued at $963,121.95. This trade represents a 18.32% 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, CEO Tony R. Thene sold 57,456 shares of Carpenter Technology stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $483.90, for a total value of $27,802,958.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 439,631 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $212,737,440.90. The trade was a 11.56% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 109,721 shares of company stock valued at $53,091,824. 2.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Carpenter Technology Stock Down 3.5%

Shares of Carpenter Technology stock opened at $458.68 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $22.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a 50 day moving average of $540.28 and a 200 day moving average of $479.20. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 3.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Carpenter Technology Corporation has a 52-week low of $228.00 and a 52-week high of $625.98.

Carpenter Technology (NYSE:CRS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.09 by $0.14. Carpenter Technology had a net margin of 16.96% and a return on equity of 26.46%. The firm had revenue of $679.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $863.33 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.21 EPS. The company's revenue was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Carpenter Technology Corporation will post 13.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Carpenter Technology Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 25th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 25th. Carpenter Technology's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.60%.

About Carpenter Technology

Carpenter Technology Corporation engages in the manufacture, fabrication, and distribution of specialty metals in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, Mexico, Canada, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Specialty Alloys Operations and Performance Engineered Products. The company offers specialty alloys, including titanium alloys, powder metals, stainless steels, alloy steels, and tool steels, as well as additives, and metal powders and parts. It serves to aerospace, defense, medical, transportation, energy, industrial, and consumer markets.

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