CRA International (NASDAQ:CRAI) Shares Down 4.7% – Time to Sell?

CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRAI)’s stock price dropped 4.7% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $196.80 and last traded at $196.86. Approximately 9,053 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 37,329 shares. The stock had previously closed at $206.55.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on CRAI. StockNews.com downgraded CRA International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barrington Research lifted their price objective on shares of CRA International from $194.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th.

CRA International Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $192.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $177.42. The company has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.51, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.13.

CRA International (NASDAQ:CRAI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The business services provider reported $1.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.19. CRA International had a net margin of 6.41% and a return on equity of 24.46%. The firm had revenue of $167.75 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $166.83 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.13 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that CRA International, Inc. will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

CRA International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th were given a dividend of $0.49 per share. This is a boost from CRA International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. CRA International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.72%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Paul A. Maleh sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.55, for a total transaction of $1,436,625.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 151,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,060,433.60. This represents a 4.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CRAI. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of CRA International in the 3rd quarter valued at $164,000. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of CRA International during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its holdings in shares of CRA International by 2.5% during the second quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 3,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $517,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in CRA International by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 3,095 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $543,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of CRA International by 13.6% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,280 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $549,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.13% of the company’s stock.

About CRA International

CRA International, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides economic, financial, and management consulting services worldwide. It advises clients on economic and financial matters pertaining to litigation and regulatory proceedings; and guides corporations through business strategy and performance-related issues.