AlphaQuest LLC Buys 24,684 Shares of Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CCK)

AlphaQuest LLC raised its position in shares of Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CCK) by 257.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 34,277 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 24,684 shares during the quarter. Crown accounts for approximately 0.4% of AlphaQuest LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Crown were worth $2,834,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CCK. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Crown by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 702 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Crown by 16.2% during the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 992 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $82,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the period. Marshall & Sullivan Inc. WA grew its stake in shares of Crown by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Marshall & Sullivan Inc. WA now owns 57,268 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,735,000 after buying an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Crown by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 45,445 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,758,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in shares of Crown by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 5,013 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $481,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.93% of the company’s stock.

Crown Stock Performance

Shares of CCK stock opened at $91.77 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $10.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.78, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.88. Crown Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $70.84 and a 52-week high of $98.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88. The company’s 50 day moving average is $86.18 and its 200 day moving average is $89.54.

Crown (NYSE:CCK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.08. Crown had a return on equity of 25.12% and a net margin of 3.59%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Crown Holdings, Inc. will post 6.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Crown Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This is an increase from Crown’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.13%. Crown’s payout ratio is currently 29.21%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Mizuho cut their price objective on Crown from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Crown from $113.00 to $108.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Crown from $112.00 to $109.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Crown from $103.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Crown from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Crown has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.00.

Crown Company Profile

Crown Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the packaging business in the United States and internationally. It operates through Americas Beverage, European Beverage, Asia Pacific, and Transit Packaging segments. The company manufactures and sells recyclable aluminum beverage cans and ends, glass bottles, steel crowns, aluminum caps, non-beverage cans, and aerosol cans and closures.