Zacks Research Has Optimistic Outlook of CRAI Q2 Earnings

Charles River Associates (NASDAQ:CRAI) – Investment analysts at Zacks Research lifted their Q2 2027 earnings estimates for Charles River Associates in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, May 27th. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the business services provider will post earnings per share of $2.32 for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $2.24. The consensus estimate for Charles River Associates’ current full-year earnings is $8.48 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Charles River Associates’ Q3 2027 earnings at $2.00 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $8.99 EPS, Q1 2028 earnings at $2.40 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $9.38 EPS.

Charles River Associates (NASDAQ:CRAI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The business services provider reported $1.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $200.98 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $193.81 million. Charles River Associates had a return on equity of 26.02% and a net margin of 6.22%.

CRAI has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $245.00 target price on shares of Charles River Associates in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Charles River Associates from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Charles River Associates currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $245.00.

Charles River Associates Trading Down 0.2%

CRAI opened at $145.26 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $938.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.18, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.75. The company’s 50 day moving average is $154.19 and its 200 day moving average is $175.85. Charles River Associates has a 12-month low of $132.17 and a 12-month high of $227.29.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CRAI. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Charles River Associates by 86.6% during the first 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 increased its position in Charles River Associates by 140.2% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 44,555 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,942,000 after acquiring an additional 26,003 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC increased its position in Charles River Associates by 72.3% during the third quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 32,642 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,807,000 after acquiring an additional 13,692 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Charles River Associates during the second quarter valued at $1,424,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its position in Charles River Associates by 154.3% during 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. Institutional investors own 84.13% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Charles River Associates news, EVP Jonathan D. Yellin sold 2,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.72, for a total transaction of $332,370.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,247 shares in the company, valued at $1,956,846.84. The trade was a 14.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 4.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Charles River Associates Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 26th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Charles River Associates’s payout ratio is 31.67%.

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.