Principal Financial Group Inc. Increases Stake in Crane $CR

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Crane (NYSE:CR) by 8.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 489,810 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 37,026 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Crane were worth $90,196,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of CR. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Crane during the 2nd quarter valued at about $190,533,000. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Crane by 5,159.8% in the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 232,851 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $44,216,000 after purchasing an additional 228,424 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Crane by 299.7% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 234,131 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $43,876,000 after purchasing an additional 175,554 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Crane by 117.5% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 216,314 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $41,076,000 after purchasing an additional 116,881 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in Crane by 23.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 440,817 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $67,524,000 after buying an additional 84,278 shares in the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jennifer Pollino acquired 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 29th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $184.29 per share, for a total transaction of $276,435.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 1,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $276,435. This represents a ? increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sanjay Kapoor bought 2,814 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 29th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $177.68 per share, for a total transaction of $499,991.52. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 2,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $499,991.52. This trade represents a ? increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders bought 5,464 shares of company stock valued at $987,470. Company insiders own 2.12% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Crane

Here are the key news stories impacting Crane this week:

• Positive Sentiment: TipRanks highlights coordinated insider buys at Crane, noting multiple senior leaders increased positions on Feb. 2 — signaling management confidence after the recent quarter. TipRanks: Crane insiders buy
• Positive Sentiment: CEO Max H. Mitchell purchased 1,000 shares at about $183.71 on Jan. 30 (increasing his stake modestly), a high?visibility buy from the top executive. SEC Form 4: Max Mitchell
• Positive Sentiment: Director Sanjay Kapoor bought 2,814 shares at roughly $177.68 on Jan. 29 (?$500k), a material director-level purchase. SEC Form 4: Sanjay Kapoor
• Positive Sentiment: Director Jennifer Pollino acquired 1,500 shares at about $184.29 on Jan. 29, further adding to insider accumulation. SEC Form 4: Jennifer Pollino
• Positive Sentiment: Director Susan D. Lynch purchased 150 shares at about $182.22 on Jan. 29, representing a meaningful percentage increase in her holding. SEC Form 4: Susan Lynch
• Neutral Sentiment: A QuiverQuant item reports fundraising by Representative Elijah Crane ($1.5M) — this appears to be a namesake political disclosure with no known connection to Crane Co.; treat it as unrelated to CR’s fundamentals. QuiverQuant: Elijah Crane fundraising

Crane Trading Up 1.6%

NYSE CR opened at $185.51 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. The firm has a market cap of $10.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.57, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.24. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $191.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $188.51. Crane has a one year low of $127.04 and a one year high of $214.31.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.10. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. The firm had revenue of $581.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $572.16 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.38 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Crane has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.550-6.75 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Crane Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. This is an increase from Crane’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Crane’s payout ratio is 16.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on CR shares. Wolfe Research set a $215.00 target price on Crane and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Crane from $200.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Crane in a research report on Monday, December 29th. CJS Securities upgraded shares of Crane to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $238.00 price target on shares of Crane in a report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.00.

Crane 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.