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

CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRAI - Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 87,000 shares, an increase of 56.5% from the February 28th total of 55,600 shares. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 38,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Barrington Research lifted their price objective on shares of CRA International from $212.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th.

CRA International Stock Down 5.0 %

CRA International stock traded down $8.86 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $167.76. The stock had a trading volume of 18,086 shares, compared to its average volume of 38,664. The firm has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.09. CRA International has a 52-week low of $133.54 and a 52-week high of $214.01. The company has a fifty day moving average of $185.66 and a 200 day moving average of $186.09.

CRA International (NASDAQ:CRAI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.44. CRA International had a return on equity of 25.95% and a net margin of 6.79%. The firm had revenue of $176.44 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $166.29 million. Equities research analysts predict that CRA International will post 7.52 EPS for the current year.

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CRA International Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. CRA International's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Daniel K. Mahoney sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.80, for a total value of $185,800.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 12,153 shares in the company, valued at $2,258,027.40. The trade was a 7.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Paul A. Maleh sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.28, for a total transaction of $1,322,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 142,022 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,035,638.16. The trade was a 5.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,850 shares of company stock worth $3,902,083 in the last 90 days. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRAI. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in CRA International during the 3rd quarter valued at $164,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of CRA International by 102.0% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,348 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $938,000 after acquiring an additional 2,700 shares in the last quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P lifted its stake in CRA International by 20.6% in the third quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 8,535 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,496,000 after acquiring an additional 1,460 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in CRA International by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 161,208 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,268,000 after acquiring an additional 1,559 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its position in CRA International by 41.9% during the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 78,136 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $13,699,000 after purchasing an additional 23,078 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.13% of the company's stock.

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.