Charles River Associates (NASDAQ:CRAI) Sets New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

Charles River Associates (NASDAQ:CRAI) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $149.79 and last traded at $150.63, with a volume of 70247 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $154.69.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CRAI. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $245.00 target price on shares of Charles River Associates in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Charles River Associates in a report on Friday, April 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $245.00.

Charles River Associates Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $993.67 million, a PE ratio of 18.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.85. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $162.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $181.86.

Charles River Associates (NASDAQ:CRAI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.01. Charles River Associates had a net margin of 7.29% and a return on equity of 26.15%. The business had revenue of $196.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $190.54 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Charles River Associates will post 8.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Charles River Associates Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 10th. Charles River Associates’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.04%.

Insider Activity at Charles River Associates

In other news, EVP Jonathan D. Yellin sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.27, for a total transaction of $410,107.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 14,046 shares in the company, valued at $2,560,164.42. This represents a 13.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 4.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Charles River Associates

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CRAI. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 48,892 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 26,003 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Charles River Associates by 72.3% in the 3rd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 32,642 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,807,000 after buying an additional 13,692 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Charles River Associates in the 2nd quarter worth $1,424,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Charles River Associates by 154.3% in the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 5,995 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,250,000 after acquiring an additional 3,638 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.