Portolan Capital Management LLC Makes New Investment in Crane NXT, Co. $CXT

Portolan Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Crane NXT, Co. (NYSE:CXT) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 131,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,853,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in Crane NXT by 120.3% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 716 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in Crane NXT by 23.1% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 177,810 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,139,000 after purchasing an additional 33,336 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in Crane NXT by 89.0% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 52,113 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,679,000 after purchasing an additional 24,540 shares during the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new position in Crane NXT in the second quarter worth $223,000. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its stake in Crane NXT by 24.1% in the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 34,825 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,877,000 after purchasing an additional 6,763 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.49% of the company’s stock.

Crane NXT Stock Down 1.4%

NYSE CXT opened at $42.24 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.83 and a beta of 1.18. Crane NXT, Co. has a 52 week low of $41.54 and a 52 week high of $69.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.50. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $50.33 and a 200-day moving average of $56.14.

Crane NXT (NYSE:CXT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $476.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $450.53 million. Crane NXT had a return on equity of 19.84% and a net margin of 8.76%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.20 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Crane NXT, Co. will post 4.16 EPS for the current year.

Crane NXT Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 27th. This is a boost from Crane NXT’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. Crane NXT’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CXT shares. Zacks Research upgraded Crane NXT from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Crane NXT in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $73.00 price objective on shares of Crane NXT in a report on Friday, February 13th. CJS Securities upgraded shares of Crane NXT to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Northland Securities set a $62.00 target price on shares of Crane NXT in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Crane NXT currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.60.

About Crane NXT

Crane NXT, Co operates as an industrial technology company that provides technology solutions to secure, detect, and authenticate customers’ important assets. The company operates through Crane Payment Innovations and Crane Currency segments. The Crane Payment Innovations segment offers electronic equipment and associated software, as well as advanced automation solutions, processing systems, field service solutions, remote diagnostics, and productivity software solutions. The Crane Currency segment provides advanced security solutions based on proprietary technology for securing physical products, including banknotes, consumer goods, and industrial products.