CRA International, Inc. (CRAI) stock analysis

P/E above its 5-year median

CRA International's P/E of 25.7 is above its own 5-year median of 21.0.

P/E above the industry

CRA International's P/E of 25.7 is above the Industrials median of 23.5.

EV/EBITDA above its 5-year median

CRA International's EV/EBITDA of 13.4 is above its 5-year median of 11.4.

P/B above the industry

CRA International's price-to-book of 6.69 is above the Industrials median of 2.40.

Trading above fair value

The share price of $205.32 is above our fair value estimate of $165.43.

Margin of safety under 20%

The price is 24.1% above fair value, so there is no margin of safety.

Revenue growing under 10% a year

Revenue grew 8.3% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.

EPS growing 10%+ a year

Diluted EPS grew 11.3% a year over the last three fiscal years.

Earnings growth not accelerating

Net income grew -8.6% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of 17.5% a year.

Growing faster than the industry

Revenue grew 12.7% over the last twelve months; the Industrials median is 7.9%.

Guidance issued

The latest outlook (full-year fiscal 2026 revenue, Nov 5, 2026) was issued for the first time, so it neither adds nor takes away points.

Gross margin slipping

Gross margin was 29.0% over the last twelve months, against 31.5% a year earlier.

Return on equity over 15%

Return on equity was 26.2% over the last twelve months and averaged 21.4% over five years.

Return on capital over 10%

Return on invested capital was 27.1%, above the 10% that usually covers the cost of capital.

Return on equity above the industry

CRA International's return on equity of 26.2% is above the Industrials median of 6.1%.

Earnings grew over 5 years

Net income grew 17.5% a year on average over the last five fiscal years.

Net margin below its 5-year average

Net margin was 6.3% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of 7.0%.

Net margin above the industry

CRA International's net margin of 6.3% is above the Industrials median of 2.5%.

Low debt

Debt is 37.8% of shareholders' equity, under the 40% we consider low.

Debt trend

Needs a balance sheet from five years ago with positive equity.

Debt covered by cash flow

Operating cash flow over the last twelve months equals 22.1% of total debt.

Interest well covered

Operating income covers interest expense 10.8 times.

Short-term assets cover short-term debts

Current assets are 1.05 times current liabilities.

Low bankruptcy risk

The Altman Z-score is 3.66; above 3 is the safe zone and below 1.8 the distress zone.

Pays a dividend

CRA International paid dividends worth 1.1% of the share price over the last twelve months.

Yield below Treasuries

The 1.1% yield is below the 4.7% on a 1-year Treasury.

Yield below the top quarter

The top quarter of US dividend payers yield 3.8% or more; CRA International yields 1.1%.

Dividend not cut

The dividend per share has not fallen by more than 10% in any of the last 10 fiscal years.

Covered by earnings

Dividends take 28.6% of net income.

Not covered by free cash flow

Dividends take 154% of free cash flow.