CRA International (NASDAQ:CRAI) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRAI)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $216.88 and last traded at $216.88, with a volume of 765 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $192.62.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on CRAI shares. Barrington Research lifted their price target 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. StockNews.com downgraded shares of CRA International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st.

CRA International Stock Up 2.4 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $184.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $174.47.

CRA International (NASDAQ:CRAI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The business services provider reported $1.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $167.75 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 firm posted $1.13 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that CRA International, Inc. will post 7.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CRA International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. This is an increase from CRA International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. CRA International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.18%.

Insider Activity at CRA International

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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 151,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,060,433.60. This represents a 4.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CRA International

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in CRA International in the 1st quarter worth approximately $115,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of CRA International during the 3rd quarter valued at about $164,000. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of CRA International during the 2nd quarter valued at about $221,000. Arkadios Wealth Advisors lifted its stake in shares of CRA International by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 3,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $517,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CRA International by 12.1% in the second quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 3,009 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $518,000 after buying an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.