Gabelli Funds LLC Has $120.54 Million Position in Crane (NYSE:CR)

Gabelli Funds LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) by 3.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 794,348 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 29,900 shares during the quarter. Crane makes up 0.9% of Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Gabelli Funds LLC owned about 1.39% of Crane worth $120,542,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Crane by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 15,625 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,371,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Crane by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 1,455 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Crane by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 1,439 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $218,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Crane by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,975 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,845,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in Crane by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 7,336 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,161,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Crane from $170.00 to $144.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com lowered shares of Crane from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Crane from $152.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Crane in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. 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, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Crane news, VP Alejandro Alcala sold 2,293 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.96, for a total transaction of $392,011.28. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 32,963 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,635,354.48. This trade represents a 6.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 2.12% of the company’s stock.

Crane Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of CR opened at $141.02 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.18. Crane has a 52-week low of $127.04 and a 52-week high of $188.52. The firm has a market cap of $8.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.31. The business’s fifty day moving average is $156.35 and its 200-day moving average is $161.03.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.07. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.90 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Crane Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. This is a positive change from Crane’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Crane’s payout ratio is currently 18.18%.

Crane 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.