Advent International L.P. Cuts Stock Holdings in Carpenter Technology Corporation $CRS

Advent International L.P. reduced its position in Carpenter Technology Corporation (NYSE:CRS) by 16.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 675,332 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 129,500 shares during the period. Carpenter Technology makes up 6.1% of Advent International L.P.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Advent International L.P. owned about 1.35% of Carpenter Technology worth $186,648,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CRS. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Carpenter Technology by 13.9% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 588,889 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $106,695,000 after buying an additional 71,747 shares during the last quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC increased its position in Carpenter Technology by 79.2% in the first quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 572,946 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $103,806,000 after buying an additional 253,163 shares during the last quarter. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP increased its holdings in Carpenter Technology by 81.8% in the 1st quarter. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP now owns 548,067 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $99,299,000 after acquiring an additional 246,599 shares during the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Carpenter Technology by 29.4% in the first quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 503,335 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $91,194,000 after purchasing an additional 114,435 shares during the period. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Carpenter Technology in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $134,790,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Elizabeth A. Socci sold 3,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $321.25, for a total transaction of $1,252,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 9,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,082,072.50. This represents a 28.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Brian J. Malloy sold 4,130 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.52, for a total transaction of $1,253,537.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 78,875 shares in the company, valued at $23,940,140. The trade was a 4.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 79,358 shares of company stock valued at $24,254,008 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Carpenter Technology Stock Performance

Shares of CRS opened at $321.45 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.37, a current ratio of 4.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $298.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $269.66. Carpenter Technology Corporation has a 52 week low of $138.61 and a 52 week high of $342.11. The stock has a market cap of $16.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.31.

Carpenter Technology (NYSE:CRS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The basic materials company reported $2.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.30. Carpenter Technology had a return on equity of 22.68% and a net margin of 14.30%.The firm had revenue of $733.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $741.18 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.73 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Carpenter Technology Corporation will post 6.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Carpenter Technology Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 21st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 21st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Carpenter Technology’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen upped their price target on Carpenter Technology from $305.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. KeyCorp upgraded Carpenter Technology from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $380.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $425.00 price objective on shares of Carpenter Technology and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Zacks Research cut Carpenter Technology from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Carpenter Technology from $305.00 to $388.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $371.14.

Carpenter Technology 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.