CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRAI) Short Interest Update

CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRAI) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 60,400 shares, a growth of 19.6% from the January 31st total of 50,500 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 36,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.7 days. Approximately 0.9% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling at CRA International

In other CRA International news, CEO Paul A. Maleh sold 7,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.50, for a total transaction of $1,463,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 145,806 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,067,655. This represents a 4.95 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas Aiken Avery sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.05, for a total value of $199,050.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 14,669 shares in the company, valued at $2,919,864.45. This trade represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 10,600 shares of company stock valued at $2,060,790 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of CRA International

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of CRA International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $249,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in CRA International by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 3,982 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $745,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of CRA International during the 4th quarter valued at $9,389,000. Foundry Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CRA International by 56.0% during the 4th quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 29,115 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,450,000 after buying an additional 10,455 shares during the period. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of CRA International during the 4th quarter valued at $281,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.13% of the company’s stock.

CRA International Stock Performance

CRAI stock opened at $185.28 on Friday. CRA International has a fifty-two week low of $133.54 and a fifty-two week high of $214.01. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $188.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $183.94. The company has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.09.

CRA International (NASDAQ:CRAI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.44. The company had revenue of $176.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $166.29 million. CRA International had a return on equity of 25.95% and a net margin of 6.79%. Sell-side analysts forecast that CRA International will post 7.52 earnings per share for the current year.

CRA International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. CRA International’s payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Barrington Research upped their target price on CRA International from $212.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th.

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.