DA Davidson Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Crane (NYSE:CR) Stock

Crane (NYSE:CR) had its price target increased by equities researchers at DA Davidson from $185.00 to $200.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the conglomerate’s stock. DA Davidson’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 17.55% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered Crane from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Crane from $176.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Crane from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Crane has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.80.

Crane Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of Crane stock opened at $170.14 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $162.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $158.97. Crane has a 52-week low of $118.48 and a 52-week high of $188.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.74 billion, a PE ratio of 22.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.22.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.07. Crane had a return on equity of 24.45% and a net margin of 13.10%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.90 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Crane

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Crane by 16.1% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 655,470 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $103,748,000 after buying an additional 91,029 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Crane by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 585,718 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $92,707,000 after acquiring an additional 3,188 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Crane by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 446,500 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $67,758,000 after acquiring an additional 5,250 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lifted its holdings in Crane by 5.1% during the third quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 183,725 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $29,080,000 after purchasing an additional 8,899 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in shares of Crane by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 135,191 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,515,000 after purchasing an additional 2,953 shares in the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.