MetLife Investment Management LLC Increases Stock Position in CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRAI)

MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in CRA International, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRAI) by 6.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,982 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.06% of CRA International worth $745,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in CRA International by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 3,245 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $607,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in CRA International by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,418 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $640,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments acquired a new position in CRA International in the 4th quarter valued at about $656,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in CRA International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $281,000. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC lifted its position in CRA International by 56.0% during the 4th quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 29,115 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,450,000 after acquiring an additional 10,455 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at CRA International

In related news, EVP Jonathan D. Yellin sold 1,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.51, for a total value of $333,392.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,063 shares in the company, valued at $3,631,692.13. This represents a 8.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Paul A. Maleh sold 7,500 shares of CRA International stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.28, for a total value of $1,322,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 142,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,035,638.16. This represents a 5.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,850 shares of company stock valued at $3,902,083 in the last ninety days. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

CRA International Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CRAI opened at $166.63 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.72, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.96. CRA International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $133.54 and a fifty-two week high of $214.01. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $173.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $184.21.

CRA International (NASDAQ:CRAI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.29. CRA International had a return on equity of 25.95% and a net margin of 6.79%. The company had revenue of $181.85 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $176.63 million. On average, research analysts forecast that CRA International, Inc. will post 7.52 EPS for the current year.

CRA International Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be given a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.18%. CRA International’s payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Barrington Research upped their price target on CRA International from $212.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th.

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.