Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Increases Stake in Crane $CR

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Crane (NYSE:CR) by 289,020.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,855,409 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,852,692 shares during the period. Crane comprises 0.7% of Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. owned 0.14% of Crane worth $1,448,773,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CR. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of Crane by 27.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 22,060 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $3,379,000 after buying an additional 4,749 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Crane by 23.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 440,817 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $67,524,000 after acquiring an additional 84,278 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in Crane by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 136,776 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $20,951,000 after acquiring an additional 4,217 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in Crane by 17.0% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 1,696 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $257,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares during the period. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Crane during the 2nd quarter valued at about $207,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Crane

In other news, Director Susan D. Lynch bought 150 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $177.38 per share, for a total transaction of $26,607.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,630.60. This trade represents a 68.18% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Crane Stock Performance

Shares of CR stock opened at $171.73 on Friday. Crane has a 52-week low of $159.58 and a 52-week high of $214.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $9.92 billion, a PE ratio of 22.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.15. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $179.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $187.94.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $696.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $672.74 million. Crane had a return on equity of 24.45% and a net margin of 13.10%.Crane’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.39 earnings per share. Crane has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-6.850 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current year.

Crane Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. Crane’s payout ratio is 18.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on CR shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Crane from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings lowered Crane from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $238.00 price target on shares of Crane in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $235.00 price objective on shares of Crane in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Crane from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $200.00 to $215.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $226.33.

Crane Company Profile

Crane Co, headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, is a diversified manufacturer of engineered industrial products serving customers around the world. The company operates through two primary segments: Aerospace & Electronics and Engineered Materials. Its Aerospace & Electronics division designs and produces valves, fittings, manifolds, and filtration systems for aircraft fuel, hydraulics, and environmental control systems. The Engineered Materials segment focuses on advanced polymers, heat exchangers, and specialized composite solutions for industries including chemical processing, semiconductor manufacturing, and power generation.

With roots dating back to its founding in 1855 in Chicago by R.T.