Crane Lifts 2026 Adjusted EPS Outlook To $7.23-$7.38 And Agrees To Sell UK Building Services Unit For £230 Million
Record third-quarter adjusted profit of $2.05 a share came with a higher full-year outlook and a $0.255 fourth-quarter dividend.
Crane, which makes highly engineered components for aerospace, defense, space and process industries, raised and narrowed its 2026 adjusted earnings outlook to $7.23 to $7.38 a share, from $6.85 to $7.05, after a record third quarter. It also agreed to sell its UK-based Crane Building Services & Utilities business for £230 million, the company said Tuesday.
A record quarter, with a margin split
Adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations hit a record $2.05, up 23% from $1.67 a year earlier. Earnings under standard accounting rose 6% to $1.66, from $1.56.
Sales climbed 28.1% to $754.6 million. Acquisitions added 21.1%, core growth, which strips out acquisitions and currency, added 7.7%, and currency took off 0.4%.
Adjusted operating margin reached a record 22.5%, up 130 basis points (1.3 percentage points). The standard-accounting margin fell 150 basis points to 18.6%, which the company tied mainly to expected dilution from acquisitions, including integration costs.
Core backlog rose 9% from a year earlier. Cash from operations was $128.4 million and free cash flow $116.3 million; cash stood at $315.7 million against $928.5 million of debt at September 30.
Both segments grew, acquisitions helped
CEO Alex Alcala credited strength in both units and "significant outperformance from our recent acquisitions" for the record result. Aerospace & Advanced Technologies, whose parts include pressure sensors, braking systems and power conversion products, grew sales 27.4% to $344.1 million, with core growth of 9.5% and a 17.9% lift from the Druck acquisition.
Process Flow Technologies, which makes valves, pumps and fluid handling equipment, grew sales 28.7% to $410.5 million. Core growth was 6.2%, and core orders rose 19.7%. The optek-Danulat, Panametrics and Reuter-Stokes deals added 23.9%.
For the full year, Crane expects total sales to rise about 26% at the midpoint and adjusted segment margin of about 24.0%, up from a prior view of 23.0% or more.
Reshaping the pump and valve business
The £230 million sale of Crane Building Services & Utilities is expected to close early in 2027. Alcala called it "a strong business" whose focus "is no longer aligned with the strategic direction of our PFT portfolio."
Crane has also agreed to buy the U.S. water and wastewater pump business of Trillium Flow Technologies, expected to close in the fourth quarter. Alcala said the two deals concentrate PFT around products serving pharmaceuticals, water and wastewater, power, cryogenics and nuclear markets.
The board declared a regular fourth-quarter dividend of $0.255 per share, payable December 9 to holders of record on November 30. Crane holds its earnings call Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. ET.
Both deals remain subject to customary approvals, with the Trillium purchase due to close first, in the fourth quarter.
