Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Invests $212,000 in Carpenter Technology Co. (NYSE:CRS)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV purchased a new position in shares of Carpenter Technology Co. (NYSE:CRS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,250 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $212,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CRS. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Carpenter Technology by 471.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 101,745 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $16,236,000 after buying an additional 83,930 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Carpenter Technology during the 4th quarter worth about $419,000. Radnor Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Carpenter Technology during the 4th quarter worth about $204,000. Burney Co. raised its position in shares of Carpenter Technology by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Burney Co. now owns 2,045 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $347,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Carpenter Technology during the 4th quarter worth about $511,000. 92.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Carpenter Technology from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Carpenter Technology from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, BTIG Research set a $230.00 target price on shares of Carpenter Technology in a report on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Carpenter Technology presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $168.00.

Carpenter Technology Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CRS traded down $4.48 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $225.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 609,068 shares, compared to its average volume of 759,949. The company has a current ratio of 3.80, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $192.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $189.29. Carpenter Technology Co. has a one year low of $95.17 and a one year high of $236.59. The company has a market cap of $11.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.33.

Carpenter Technology (NYSE:CRS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The basic materials company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.14. Carpenter Technology had a net margin of 9.34% and a return on equity of 19.88%. The business had revenue of $727.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $729.67 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.19 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Carpenter Technology Co. will post 6.83 EPS for the current year.

Carpenter Technology Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. Carpenter Technology's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.33%.

Carpenter Technology declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, April 24th that permits the company to repurchase $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the basic materials company to purchase up to 4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Carpenter Technology

In other news, Director I Martin Inglis sold 3,433 shares of Carpenter Technology stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.66, for a total value of $678,566.78. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,732 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,330,647.12. This trade represents a 33.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Carpenter Technology Profile

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.