FTI Consulting (NYSE:FCN – Get Free Report) and Charles River Associates (NASDAQ:CRAI – Get Free Report) are both business services companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, valuation and risk.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
99.4% of FTI Consulting shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 84.1% of Charles River Associates shares are held by institutional investors. 1.8% of FTI Consulting shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.2% of Charles River Associates shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Profitability
This table compares FTI Consulting and Charles River Associates’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| FTI Consulting | 6.82% | 12.88% | 7.90% |
| Charles River Associates | 7.93% | 25.51% | 9.12% |
Analyst Recommendations
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| FTI Consulting | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2.33 |
| Charles River Associates | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
FTI Consulting presently has a consensus target price of $175.50, suggesting a potential upside of 9.98%. Charles River Associates has a consensus target price of $228.00, suggesting a potential upside of 9.36%. Given FTI Consulting’s higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe FTI Consulting is more favorable than Charles River Associates.
Volatility & Risk
FTI Consulting has a beta of 0.21, suggesting that its share price is 79% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Charles River Associates has a beta of 0.94, suggesting that its share price is 6% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares FTI Consulting and Charles River Associates”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| FTI Consulting | $3.70 billion | 1.40 | $280.09 million | $7.10 | 22.48 |
| Charles River Associates | $687.41 million | 2.00 | $46.65 million | $8.26 | 25.24 |
FTI Consulting has higher revenue and earnings than Charles River Associates. FTI Consulting is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Charles River Associates, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Charles River Associates beats FTI Consulting on 9 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.
About FTI Consulting
FTI Consulting, Inc. provides business advisory services to manage change, mitigate risk, and resolve disputes worldwide. The company operates through Corporate Finance & Restructuring, Forensic and Litigation Consulting, Economic Consulting, Technology, and Strategic Communications segments. The Corporate Finance & Restructuring segment provides business transformation and strategy, transactions, and turnaround and restructuring services. The Forensic and Litigation Consulting segment offers construction and environmental solutions, data and analytics, disputes, health solutions, and risk and investigation services. The Economic Consulting segment provides antitrust and competition economics, financial economics, and international arbitration services. The Technology segment offers corporate legal department consulting; e-discovery and expertise; and information governance, privacy, and security services. The Strategic Communications segment provides corporate reputation, financial communications, and public affairs services. It serves aerospace and defense, airlines and aviation, blockchain and digital assets, chemicals, construction and environmental solutions, energy, financial services, food and agriculture, healthcare and life sciences, hospitality, gaming and leisure, automotive and industrial, insurance, mining, private equity, power and renewable, public sector and government contracts, real estate, retail and consumer products, telecom, media and technology, and transportation and logistics sectors. FTI Consulting, Inc. was incorporated in 1982 and is headquartered in Washington, the District of Columbia.
About Charles River Associates
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. The company also offers consulting services, including research and analysis, expert testimony, and support in litigation and regulatory proceedings in the areas of finance, accounting, economics, insurance, and forensic accounting and investigations to corporate clients and attorneys. In addition, it offers management consulting services comprising strategy development, performance improvement, corporate strategy and portfolio analysis, estimation of market demand, environmental, social and corporate governance and sustainability strategy and analysis, design and implementation of auction and bidding, new product pricing strategies, survey and market research, valuation of intellectual property and other assets, assessment of competitors’ actions, and analysis of new sources of supply. The company serves various industries, including communications and media; consumer, health, and wellness products; energy; entertainment and leisure; financial services; healthcare; life sciences; manufacturing and industries; natural resources; retail and distribution; technology; and transportation. CRA International, Inc. was incorporated in 1965 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.
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