Crane (NYSE:CR) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s Why

Shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) saw unusually-high trading volume on Friday . Approximately 171,502 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 21% from the previous session’s volume of 216,177 shares.The stock last traded at $162.94 and had previously closed at $162.91.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CR shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Crane from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Crane currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $166.80.

Crane Trading Down 1.0 %

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $163.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $158.29. The firm has a market cap of $9.23 billion, a PE ratio of 21.35, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The conglomerate reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.06. Crane had a return on equity of 24.45% and a net margin of 13.10%. The company had revenue of $597.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $594.45 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.03 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Crane Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were given a dividend of $0.205 per share. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Crane’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.06%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Matrix Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Crane during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Crane in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Crane in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Crane by 81.8% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 220 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Crane during the third quarter valued at $37,000. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Crane Company Profile

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.