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Crane Co.'s (CR) Shares Hit a New 52-Week High at $65.88

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Shares of Crane Co. (CR - Free Report) reached a new 52-week high of $65.88 on Aug 26, before closing the trading session slightly lower at $65.23. This apex improved upon the last 52-week high of $65.86 on Aug 23.

As of Aug 26, the stock yielded a year-to-date return of 38.1%. The trading volume for the session was 0.17 million shares. Earnings estimate revisions for 2016 and 2017 indicate the stock’s potential for further price appreciation.

Growth Drivers

Crane Co. impressed investors with its financial performance, recording better-than-expected results in three of the last four quarters. Average earnings surprise was a positive 5.90%. Last quarter, the company’s earnings of $1.21 per share exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.02 by 18.63%. Also, the top line of $712.2 million surpassed our estimate of $665.5 million.

Despite being cautious about the uncertainties in the forex and commodity markets, Crane is optimistic about its segmental performance in 2016. The company has increased its non-GAAP earnings guidance to $4.00−$4.20 per share, from $3.85−$4.15 expected earlier. Sales are still expected to be $2.7 billion, with core sales growth to be within (1.5%) to +1.5% year over year. Cash from operating activities is projected in a range of $245−$270 million, up from the earlier projection of $240−$270 million.

Also, the company anticipates benefiting from its inorganic growth strategies. In this regard, the 2013 acquisition of MEI assets, now part of Payment & Merchandising Technologies segment, is worth mentioning. By the end of 2016, the company aims to realize cumulative synergistic benefits of $33 million from this acquisition.

We believe that impressive results, outlook and the synergistic benefits from acquired assets have created positive momentum for Crane Co., driving the company’s share price higher by 12.6% since Jul 25.

Estimate Revisions Show Potency

Over the last 60 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Crane Co. grew 1.5% to $4.16 for 2016 and 0.9% to $4.42 for 2017. These estimates represent year-over-year growth of 0.6% for 2016 and 6.3% for 2017. Also, the company has an Earnings ESP of +4.07% for 2017.

CRANE CO Price and Consensus

 

CRANE CO Price and Consensus | CRANE CO Quote

With a market capitalization of $3.8 billion, Crane Co. carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Another similarly ranked stock in the diversified operations industry includes Barloworld Ltd. (BRRAY - Free Report) . Crane also faces competition from Bunzl plc (BZLFY - Free Report) and CK Hutchison Holdings Limited (CKHUY - Free Report) .

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