CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRAI) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRAI) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 60,600 shares, a growth of 27.8% from the November 30th total of 47,400 shares. Currently, 0.9% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 37,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.6 days.

CRA International Stock Performance

Shares of CRAI opened at $185.42 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a PE ratio of 30.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.13. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $191.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $177.97. CRA International has a 1 year low of $97.31 and a 1 year high of $210.70.

CRA International (NASDAQ:CRAI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The business services provider reported $1.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $167.75 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $166.83 million. CRA International had a net margin of 6.41% and a return on equity of 24.46%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.13 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that CRA International will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

CRA International Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.06%. This is a boost from CRA International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 26th. CRA International’s payout ratio is presently 31.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CRA International news, CEO Paul A. Maleh sold 7,500 shares of CRA International stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The shares were 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 $29,060,433.60. This trade represents a 4.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CRA International

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CRAI. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of CRA International by 2.9% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 61,153 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $10,532,000 after buying an additional 1,705 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in CRA International by 13.6% during the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,280 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $549,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of CRA International by 34.9% in the 2nd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,870 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,700,000 after purchasing an additional 2,551 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of CRA International in the 2nd quarter valued at $221,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CRA International during the 3rd quarter worth $573,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.13% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRAI has been the subject of several research reports. Barrington Research lifted their target price on shares of CRA International from $194.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. StockNews.com downgraded CRA International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st.

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.