CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRAI) Short Interest Up 48.6% in October

CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRAI) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 59,300 shares, an increase of 48.6% from the September 30th total of 39,900 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 43,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.4 days. Approximately 0.9% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling at CRA International

In other news, CFO Daniel K. Mahoney sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.21, for a total value of $155,210.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 11,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,804,161.04. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CEO Paul A. Maleh sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.33, for a total value of $1,187,475.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 159,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,208,035.96. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Daniel K. Mahoney sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.21, for a total transaction of $155,210.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 11,624 shares in the company, valued at $1,804,161.04. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,750 shares of company stock worth $1,695,720 over the last quarter. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CRA International

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its stake in CRA International by 48.7% during the third quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 4,460 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $782,000 after buying an additional 1,460 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in CRA International during the third quarter worth about $573,000. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in CRA International during the second quarter worth about $221,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in CRA International by 34.9% during the second quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,870 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,700,000 after buying an additional 2,551 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. 84.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CRA International Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CRAI traded up $4.00 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $196.31. 13,950 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 37,526. CRA International has a one year low of $81.29 and a one year high of $198.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.36 billion, a PE ratio of 31.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.14. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $173.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $168.75.

CRA International (NASDAQ:CRAI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.34. CRA International had a net margin of 6.17% and a return on equity of 22.37%. The business had revenue of $171.44 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.87 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.42 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that CRA International will post 6.93 EPS for the current year.

CRA International Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 27th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. CRA International’s payout ratio is 27.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of CRA International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th.

CRA International Company Profile

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.