Stifel Nicolaus Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Crane (NYSE:CR) Stock Price

Crane (NYSE:CR) had its price objective lowered by stock analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $201.00 to $200.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “hold” rating on the conglomerate’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ target price suggests a potential upside of 2.87% from the company’s current price.

CR has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Crane in a research note on Friday, March 27th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $235.00 target price on shares of Crane in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Crane from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $238.00 price objective on shares of Crane in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Crane has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $223.83.

Crane Stock Performance

Shares of Crane stock traded up $0.64 on Tuesday, reaching $194.43. The stock had a trading volume of 13,640 shares, compared to its average volume of 471,067. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $187.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $188.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.18. Crane has a fifty-two week low of $135.47 and a fifty-two week high of $214.31. The stock has a market cap of $11.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.34.

Crane (NYSE:CR) last released its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $581.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $572.16 million. Crane had a net margin of 13.10% and a return on equity of 24.45%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.38 EPS. Crane has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.550-6.75 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Crane will post 7.87 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Crane news, CEO Max H. Mitchell purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $183.71 per share, with a total value of $183,710.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 410,667 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $75,443,634.57. The trade was a 0.24% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Susan D. Lynch purchased 150 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $182.22 per share, with a total value of $27,333.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 220 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,088.40. This represents a 214.29% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders acquired 5,464 shares of company stock worth $987,470. Corporate insiders own 2.12% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Crane

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CR. First Horizon Corp bought a new position in shares of Crane during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. TD Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Crane during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Crane during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Crane by 57.9% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 180 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Crane in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.