Blue Grotto Capital LLC Raises Stake in Carpenter Technology Corporation $CRS

Blue Grotto Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Carpenter Technology Corporation (NYSE:CRS) by 43.1% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 229,025 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 69,025 shares during the quarter. Carpenter Technology comprises 6.5% of Blue Grotto Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Blue Grotto Capital LLC’s holdings in Carpenter Technology were worth $56,235,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. WCM Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Carpenter Technology by 77.9% in the 3rd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 357,498 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $86,261,000 after buying an additional 156,554 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Carpenter Technology by 4.0% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 467,702 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $114,841,000 after acquiring an additional 18,201 shares in the last quarter. Bright Futures Wealth Management LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Carpenter Technology during the third quarter valued at approximately $674,000. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Carpenter Technology by 43.3% during the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 56,082 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $15,500,000 after acquiring an additional 16,954 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new stake in Carpenter Technology during the third quarter worth $1,373,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Carpenter Technology

In related news, SVP James D. Dee sold 15,800 shares of Carpenter Technology stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $391.78, for a total value of $6,190,124.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 73,739 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,889,465.42. The trade was a 17.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Steven E. Karol sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $381.12, for a total transaction of $1,333,920.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 225,381 shares in the company, valued at $85,897,206.72. The trade was a 1.53% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 22,300 shares of company stock valued at $8,664,044. 2.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Carpenter Technology Stock Down 7.3%

CRS stock opened at $378.40 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $359.47 and a 200-day moving average of $310.53. Carpenter Technology Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $138.61 and a fifty-two week high of $412.31. The company has a market capitalization of $18.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.95, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a current ratio of 4.25.

Carpenter Technology (NYSE:CRS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $728.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $733.76 million. Carpenter Technology had a net margin of 14.77% and a return on equity of 23.63%. The company’s revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.66 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Carpenter Technology Corporation will post 6.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Carpenter Technology Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 27th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 27th. Carpenter Technology’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CRS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Carpenter Technology from $388.00 to $394.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Carpenter Technology in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Susquehanna began coverage on shares of Carpenter Technology in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. They set a “positive” rating and a $470.00 price target for the company. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on shares of Carpenter Technology from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Carpenter Technology in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Carpenter Technology currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $385.50.

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. It serves to aerospace, defense, medical, transportation, energy, industrial, and consumer markets.