Axiom Investors LLC DE Grows Stock Position in Crane $CR

Axiom Investors LLC DE boosted its holdings in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) by 9.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 101,998 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,598 shares during the period. Axiom Investors LLC DE’s holdings in Crane were worth $18,811,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CR. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in Crane by 289,020.7% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 7,855,409 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,448,773,000 after purchasing an additional 7,852,692 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Crane during the 4th quarter valued at about $198,509,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in Crane by 114.8% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 439,157 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $80,866,000 after purchasing an additional 234,681 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Crane by 116.2% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 401,596 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $73,950,000 after purchasing an additional 215,815 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Crane by 84.1% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 431,048 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $78,300,000 after purchasing an additional 196,917 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Crane Stock Performance

Crane stock opened at $200.87 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $181.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $187.26. 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 cap of $11.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.61, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.12. Crane has a fifty-two week low of $159.58 and a fifty-two week high of $214.31.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The conglomerate reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $696.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $672.74 million. Crane had a return on equity of 24.45% and a net margin of 13.10%.The business’s revenue was up 24.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.39 EPS. Crane has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-6.850 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Crane will post 7.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Crane Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. Crane’s payout ratio is presently 18.35%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Susan D. Lynch acquired 150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $177.38 per share, with a total value of $26,607.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 370 shares in the company, valued at $65,630.60. The trade was a 68.18% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CR. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $235.00 price target on shares of Crane in a report on Monday, June 1st. Weiss Ratings downgraded Crane from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Crane from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Crane from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $200.00 to $215.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $226.33.

About Crane

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.