If you are staring at Crane’s stock chart and wondering what’s coming next, you are definitely not alone. Investors have watched the stock shoot up an impressive 192.2% over the past three years and an eye-catching 447.6% over the last five. Even this year, with a 21.7% gain year-to-date, Crane is proving resilient as markets react to shifting economic outlooks, sector trends, and global policy updates.
So, should you join in, cash out, or just keep an eye on the ticker? Those short-term moves—up 5.0% this past week alone—can make Crane seem unstoppable, but seasoned investors know price alone does not paint the full picture. That is where a smart look at valuation comes in. Right now, Crane has a valuation score of 0 out of 6, meaning it has not been flagged as undervalued in any of the main tests analysts use.
But is that the whole story? Let’s break down what those six checks are, how valuation is measured, and why numbers sometimes miss what really moves a stock. By the end, I will show you what might be an even smarter way to size up Crane’s true value.
Crane scores just 0/6 on our valuation checks. See what other red flags we found in the full valuation breakdown.
A Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model estimates a company’s value by forecasting its future cash flows and then discounting those amounts back to today’s dollars. The basic idea is to figure out how much money Crane is expected to generate in the coming years and to determine what that is actually worth right now.
As of the last twelve months, Crane delivered $303.6 million in Free Cash Flow. Looking ahead, analysts predict that Free Cash Flow will continue to grow, reaching about $459.2 million by 2028. Only the next five years rely directly on analyst forecasts, while later years are extrapolated using growth assumptions. By 2035, projections estimate Crane’s Free Cash Flow at nearly $665.7 million, all in USD.
When you add up those future cash flows and discount them back to the present, the DCF model arrives at an intrinsic value of roughly $170.40 per share for Crane. Given the current market price, this model suggests the stock is about 7.8% overvalued at this time.
Result: ABOUT RIGHT
CR Discounted Cash Flow as at Oct 2025
Simply Wall St performs a valuation analysis on every stock in the world every day (check out Crane’s valuation analysis). We show the entire calculation in full. You can track the result in your watchlist or portfolio and be alerted when this changes.
Story Continues
For profitable companies like Crane, the price-to-earnings (PE) ratio is a tried-and-true valuation metric. It helps investors understand how much they are paying for every dollar of earnings the company generates. The “right” PE ratio takes into account not just raw profit, but also expectations for future growth and the risks a company faces. Strong growth prospects often justify a higher PE, while more risk or slower growth typically calls for a lower multiple.
Crane currently trades at a PE ratio of 35x. That stands notably above the industry average of 24.2x and also higher than the average among its peers, which sits at 21.2x. At first glance, this suggests Crane is richly valued compared to similar companies in the machinery sector.
However, that is where Simply Wall St’s proprietary Fair Ratio comes in. The Fair Ratio does more than just compare against industry peers. It adjusts for factors such as Crane’s growth outlook, profit margins, size, and overall risk profile. This makes it a more meaningful benchmark for what the company’s PE “should” be if everything is taken into account. For Crane, the Fair Ratio is calculated to be 25.6x. Since the actual PE is meaningfully higher, this points to the shares being overvalued based on earnings.
Result: OVERVALUED
NYSE:CR PE Ratio as at Oct 2025
PE ratios tell one story, but what if the real opportunity lies elsewhere? Discover companies where insiders are betting big on explosive growth.
Earlier, we mentioned there is an even better way to understand valuation, so let’s introduce you to Narratives. A Narrative is your story behind the numbers. It is an easy and accessible way to combine your personal view of Crane’s prospects (such as its future revenue, earnings, and profit margins) with a fair value forecast. Narratives bridge the gap between standard financial analysis and your own investment perspective by connecting what the company does, why it might succeed or struggle, and how that impacts what you think it’s worth.
On Simply Wall St’s Community page, millions of investors use Narratives to create and share their investment thesis in a few clicks, and to compare their view to market price in real time. They are a dynamic tool: when news breaks, earnings update, or analyst forecasts change, your Narrative reacts automatically, ensuring your decision is always informed by the latest data.
For example, among current Crane Narratives, some investors expect the company’s focus on automation and resilient end-markets will drive growth and assign a fair value as high as $230.00, while others are more cautious about integration and acquisition risks and put fair value closer to $170.00. With Narratives, you always know whether your story aligns with the price, and can decide with confidence if it’s time to buy, hold, or walk away.
Do you think there’s more to the story for Crane? Create your own Narrative to let the Community know!
NYSE:CR Community Fair Values as at Oct 2025
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
Companies discussed in this article include CR.
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