Carpenter Technology (NYSE:CRS) Reaches New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Carpenter Technology Co. (NYSE:CRS)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Benchmark raised their price target on the stock from $100.00 to $140.00. Benchmark currently has a buy rating on the stock. Carpenter Technology traded as high as $106.71 and last traded at $105.75, with a volume of 309072 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $102.54.

Several other analysts also recently commented on CRS. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Carpenter Technology from $90.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Northcoast Research reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Carpenter Technology in a report on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $109.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Elizabeth A. Socci sold 802 shares of Carpenter Technology stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.11, for a total transaction of $81,892.22. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 11,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,175,183.99. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Carpenter Technology news, Director Steven E. Karol sold 31,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.57, for a total value of $3,117,670.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 244,126 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,551,751.82. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Elizabeth A. Socci sold 802 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.11, for a total value of $81,892.22. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 11,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,175,183.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Carpenter Technology in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Whittier Trust Co. acquired a new position in shares of Carpenter Technology during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Carpenter Technology during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Westend Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Carpenter Technology in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in Carpenter Technology by 322.5% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,162 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 887 shares during the period. 92.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Carpenter Technology Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $75.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.67. The company has a market cap of $5.14 billion, a PE ratio of 39.65 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 3.20 and a quick ratio of 1.45.

Carpenter Technology (NYSE:CRS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $684.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $707.73 million. Carpenter Technology had a net margin of 4.83% and a return on equity of 12.75%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.38 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Carpenter Technology Co. will post 3.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Carpenter Technology Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 23rd will be issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 22nd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.77%. This is an increase from Carpenter Technology’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Carpenter Technology’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.42%.

Carpenter Technology Company Profile

Carpenter Technology Corporation engages in the manufacture, fabrication, and distribution of specialty metals in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, Mexico, Canada, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Specialty Alloys Operations and Performance Engineered Products. The company offers specialty alloys, including titanium alloys, powder metals, stainless steels, alloy steels, and tool steels, as well as additives, and metal powders and parts.