Charles River Associates (NASDAQ:CRAI) Stock Price Up 6.8% – Here’s Why

Charles River Associates (NASDAQ:CRAI)’s share price rose 6.8% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $190.49 and last traded at $192.23. 34,832 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 166,286 shares. The stock had previously closed at $179.98.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Charles River Associates from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $245.00.

Charles River Associates Trading Down 3.2%

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $153.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $163.23. The company has a market cap of $1.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.69.

Charles River Associates (NASDAQ:CRAI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The business services provider reported $1.99 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $200.97 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $193.81 million. Charles River Associates had a return on equity of 26.02% and a net margin of 6.22%. Equities analysts expect that Charles River Associates will post 8.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Charles River Associates Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th were paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 26th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. Charles River Associates’s payout ratio is presently 31.67%.

Insider Activity at Charles River Associates

In other news, EVP Jonathan D. Yellin sold 2,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.72, for a total value of $332,370.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 13,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,956,846.84. This trade represents a 14.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 4.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Charles River Associates

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CRAI. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Charles River Associates by 86.6% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 105,339 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $17,052,000 after acquiring an additional 48,892 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in Charles River Associates by 140.2% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 44,555 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,942,000 after acquiring an additional 26,003 shares during the last quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Charles River Associates by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 6,489 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,302,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Charles River Associates in the second quarter valued at about $1,424,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC raised its position in Charles River Associates by 72.3% in the third quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 32,642 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,807,000 after purchasing an additional 13,692 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.13% of the company’s stock.

Charles River Associates Company Profile

Charles River Associates (NASDAQ: CRAI) is a global consulting firm specializing in economic, financial and management advisory services. Founded in 1965 and headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, the company provides expert analysis to support litigation, regulatory proceedings, and strategic decision-making. Its multidisciplinary teams draw on academic rigor and industry experience to deliver quantitative and qualitative insights tailored to clients’ needs.

The firm’s service offerings include competition economics, antitrust and merger analysis, intellectual property valuation and damages assessment, and risk management.