Crane (NYSE:CR) Short Interest Update

Crane (NYSE:CR) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 630,900 shares, a decrease of 6.5% from the May 31st total of 675,000 shares. Currently, 1.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 207,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Crane Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE CR traded down $0.14 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $142.89. 325,094 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 234,267. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $144.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $131.42. 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 has a 12-month low of $82.57 and a 12-month high of $150.01. The firm has a market cap of $8.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.31, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.87.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.10. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. The business had revenue of $565.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $546.39 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.25 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current year.

Crane Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st were given a dividend of $0.205 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. Crane’s payout ratio is 21.98%.

Institutional Trading of Crane

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in Crane by 150.6% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 218 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in shares of Crane by 40.9% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 341 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Crane during the fourth quarter worth about $90,000. SkyOak Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Crane during the first quarter worth about $203,000. Finally, Sutton Place Investors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Crane during the first quarter worth about $206,000. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Crane from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 27th. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Crane from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. UBS Group increased their target price on Crane from $120.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Bank of America increased their target price on Crane from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Vertical Research raised Crane from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Crane has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $143.67.

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.