Educational information, not financial advice or a personal recommendation. Not regulated by the FCA. Do your own research. Capital at risk.

Craneware plc (CRW.L)

Healthcare Out of favour

Powering administrative and financial software for US hospitals, Craneware operates quietly behind the scenes of American healthcare.

£11.64
≈ 1,164p · London-listed shares are usually quoted in pence (GBX) elsewhere; the Almanac shows pounds (£1 = 100p).

Is Craneware plc a good stock for a UK beginner?

The honest version: There's no rating here and nothing for sale. In its favour: Impressive gross margin of over eighty-six percent highlighting software efficiency. Worth weighing: Modest overall revenue growth sits below five point seven percent. Below, we lay out what it does, what its numbers mean, and the honest risks, so you can decide for yourself.

No rating · no target price · nothing for sale here
Price-49.4%
52-week range-50% past year
£11.64
Low £9.88High £26.44
Where today's price sits versus its past year - context, not a signal.
If you had put £1,000 into Craneware plc
£506-49%

Over about 2 years to 2026-07-31. This is the share price only - reinvesting the dividends would add to it. Past performance is not a guide to the future, and it could just as easily have fallen.

How much has Craneware plc actually fallen?

−58%

Over the last 2 years of daily prices, Craneware plc fell as much as −58% from a high to a later low. Drops of this size are a normal part of owning a share - worth knowing in advance, so a dip doesn't come as a shock.

Worst peak-to-trough fall in the daily closing price over the period we hold. Past falls are not a forecast - it can fall further, or recover.

Market cap: The company's total value on the stock market - share price times the number of shares. Big = 'large-cap', small = 'small-cap'.
£398.52M
Avg volume: How many shares change hands on a typical day. Higher means it's easy to buy or exit without moving the price.
285.14K
Day range: The lowest and highest price the shares traded at during the latest day.
£11.64 – £12.40
52-week range: The lowest and highest the shares have traded over the past year - a sense of how wide the swings have been.
£9.88 – £26.44
P/E ratio: Price-to-earnings: the share price divided by yearly profit per share. Lower can mean cheaper; higher often means investors expect fast growth.
24.8
Dividend yield: The yearly dividend as a percentage of the share price - roughly the income you'd earn from dividends alone.
2.9%
Beta: How bumpy the share price is versus the whole market. Above 1 swings more than the market; below 1 is calmer. It's about the ride, not whether it goes up or down.
-0.15
How bumpy is it?Beta: How bumpy the share price is versus the whole market. Above 1 swings more than the market; below 1 is calmer. It's about the ride, not whether it goes up or down. -0.15
Calm
Wild
Steadier than most

Based on beta - how much the price swings versus the whole market. Bumpier isn't bad; it just means a rougher ride, which matters more the sooner you might need the money.

Why has it been moving?▲ +4% past week · ▼ -50% past year

Prices move on results, news and the mood of the whole market - no single headline explains a day, and a quiet week is usually just noise, not a signal.

The bull case

Craneware cements its position as essential infrastructure for US hospitals.

The bear case

Larger tech competitors crowd out niche healthcare software providers.

What does Craneware plc do?

Craneware provides software that helps US healthcare providers manage billing, pricing, and compliance so they stay financially healthy. It makes money through long-term software subscriptions, locking hospitals into its ecosystem. Keep a close eye on how quickly it converts its massive earnings growth into steady, everyday revenue increases.

VQGMI
Factor profile

On our factor screen it looks strongest on quality and growth, and weakest on momentum.

Value: How cheap the stock looks versus profits, sales and assets (higher = cheaper). 40Quality: How profitable and financially healthy the company is (higher = stronger). 67Growth: How fast revenue and earnings are growing (higher = faster). 66Momentum: How the share price has been trending recently (higher = stronger recent run). 3Income: The dividend income on offer and how sustainable it looks (higher = more/steadier). 46
Quick checks
What's strong
  • Impressive gross margin of over eighty-six percent highlighting software efficiency
  • Strong recent earnings growth of nearly thirty-eight percent year-on-year
  • Provides a reliable dividend yield of almost three percent
What to watch
  • Momentum screens low (3/100)
  • Heavy reliance on the financial health and IT budgets of US hospitals
  • Potential for delayed contract renewals in a complex regulatory market
  • Currency fluctuations between British pounds and US dollars

What do Craneware plc's numbers mean?

P/E
24.8
This shows how much investors are paying for each pound of current company earnings, reflecting what the market has historically been willing to pay.
Around the middle of the 61 Healthcare shares we cover
Forward P/E
12.9
This looks ahead using predicted earnings, suggesting the shares might look cheaper relative to future profits than past ones.
Around the middle of the 74 Healthcare shares we cover
Gross margin
86.1%
This tells us that for every pound of revenue, a hefty 86p is left over after direct delivery costs, showing the strength of software products.
Higher than most of the 74 Healthcare shares we cover
Dividend yield
2.9%
This is the annual cash payout expressed as a percentage of the share price, offering a modest income stream while you hold.
Higher than most of the 74 Healthcare shares we cover

Does Craneware plc pay a dividend?

Yes - Craneware plc currently pays a dividend of about 2.9% a year (the yearly payout as a share of the price). A dividend is a slice of profit handed to shareholders; the yield moves as the price moves, and a company can cut or stop it.

What do the numbers say about Craneware plc's dividend?

There's no rating here, and we don't judge whether the dividend will continue - that would be advice. Here are the figures income investors usually look at, and what each one means, so you can weigh it up yourself.

Dividend yield2.9%The yearly dividend as a percentage of today's price. A very high figure often means the price has fallen because the market expects a cut, so a big yield is a question to look into, not a prize.
Payout ratio67%The share of profit paid out as dividends. A lower figure leaves headroom; near or above 100% means most or all of the profit is going out as dividends.
Dividend cover1.5×Profit divided by the dividend (the payout ratio the other way up). As a rough convention many income investors like around 2× or more; below 1× means the company paid out more than it earned that year.

Figures are from the latest available data and can be distorted by one-off results. Past payments don't predict future ones, and a dividend can be cut at any time. This lays out the numbers to help you understand them - it is not a view on what will happen.

More in Healthcare

Eli LillyWest Pharmaceutical Services, Inc.Incyte CorporationThe Cigna GroupZimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.Moderna, Inc.Gilead Sciences, Inc.Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

What are the scenarios for Craneware plc?

An illustrative range for the year ahead, with the assumption behind each case — not a prediction or a price target.

£25£12£8today · £12▲ Bull · £13• Base · £12▼ Bear · £9in 1 yearILLUSTRATIVE · NOT A PREDICTION OR PRICE TARGET
Bull
+10% to +20%Market sentiment rebounds following the steep twelve-month drop.
Base
-5% to +5%Shares drift sideways as investors digest recent earnings growth.
Bear
-15% to -25%Hospital spending freezes weigh on short-term sentiment.

What are the pros and cons of Craneware plc?

4bull points
6bear points

How many points the write-up makes each way — a balance check, not a score or verdict.

The bull case4
  • Impressive gross margin: The share of each £1 of sales left after the direct cost of making the product, before other running costs. Higher usually means more pricing power. of over eighty-six percent highlighting software efficiency
  • Strong recent earnings growth of nearly thirty-eight percent year-on-year
  • Provides a reliable dividend yield: The yearly dividend as a percentage of the share price - roughly the income you'd earn from dividends alone. of almost three percent
  • Deeply embedded relationships with US healthcare providers
The catch3
  • Modest overall revenue growth: How fast the company's sales grew versus a year ago. sits below five point seven percent
  • Return on equity: How much profit the company makes for each £1 shareholders have put in. Higher usually means a more efficient business. is relatively low at six point seven percent
  • The share price has suffered a severe drop of over forty-eight percent in twelve months
Key risks3
  • Heavy reliance on the financial health and IT budgets of US hospitals
  • Potential for delayed contract renewals in a complex regulatory market
  • Currency fluctuations between British pounds and US dollars
What would flip the thesis

The write-up's own warning lights — if these start happening, the case above changes.

Confidence: medium · data: GBP · flags: none · Charts by TradingView Lightweight Charts™
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Built from public filings & market prices, checked for an education-only tone, and never a price target. How we make these →

This plain-English summary was auto-generated on 2026-08-02 from public data and checked for an education-only, no-advice tone (the figures above carry their own, usually fresher, 'as of' date). It's information, never a recommendation.

Figures as of 2026-08-02. Prices may be delayed and numbers can go stale - always double-check before acting.