CRA International, Inc. (CRAI) Stock

CRA International, Inc. (CRAI) is a Consumer Discretionary stock trading at $171.11 (as of 2026-09-02), with a market capitalization of $1.07B and a trailing P/E of 21.8. Figures are sourced from first-party U.S. SEC EDGAR filings and market data.

CRA International, Inc. provides economic, financial, and management consulting for clients in the United States, the United Kingdom, and internationally. Its work supports litigation and regulatory matters through research and analysis, expert testimony, and other assistance across areas such as finance, accounting, economics, insurance, and forensic accounting, along with management consulting focused on strategy and performance-related issues.

Understand CRA International, Inc.: how it makes money

CRA International is an economic and financial consulting firm that bills outside counsel and corporations for expert testimony, antitrust analysis, and litigation support. Revenue is project- and hour-based, so growth tracks the pipeline of active legal and regulatory matters more than any consumer cycle.

Every revenue dollar is an hour of specialist time priced at a premium over the professional's fully loaded cost, so the entire P&L hinges on billable-hour volume and the rate card.

Business quality (Mixed): A niche litigation-economics franchise delivering 11% operating margin and 26% ROE, but trading at 65% above its industry P/E, which leaves little margin for a demand miss.

Valuation: At 23× earnings, CRAI trades 65% above the Personal Services average (14×).

Bull case

Antitrust demand still building: Antitrust and forensic practices each exceeded 20% Q4 revenue growth, and management sees no near-term signs of antitrust demand slowing, implying the regulatory enforcement cycle is still in a growth phase.
Pricing power without credit drag: Rate increases held near 3% without higher write-offs or collectability issues, meaning the firm can push the rate card through the cycle without eating incremental bad debt.
Buyback trimming the float: The company authorized an additional $55 million for share repurchases, returning capital to shareholders while the antitrust book is in a growth phase.

Bear case

Talent cost is catching up: Talent-related forgivable loan amortization is expected to rise approximately $15 million, pressuring the already-lean 11% operating margin as the firm spends to retain its economists.
Premium multiple leaves no cushion: At a P/E of 23.3x versus the Personal Services industry average of 14x (65% above), the stock prices in sustained low-double-digit growth, so any demand deceleration hits the multiple first.
Tax headwind on the bottom line: The effective tax rate is projected to increase to 31% to 32% in fiscal 2026, reducing net income available to shareholders even if revenue continues to grow.

Valuation — source: SEC EDGAR (first-party)
Price	$171.11
Market Cap	$1.07B
P/E Ratio	21.8
EV / EBITDA	11.3
Price / Book	5.91
Price / Sales	1.35
FCF Yield	1.7%
DCF Value (model)	$180.29
DCF Upside vs Price	5.4%

Profitability & Growth — source: SEC EDGAR
Revenue (TTM)	$751.58M
Net Margin	7.3%
Revenue Growth (YoY)	12.8%
FCF Growth (YoY)	60.7%

Financial Health — source: SEC EDGAR
Altman Z-Score	3.70 (safe)

Valuation vs Sector & Industry
Stock P/E	21.8
Sector P/E (Consumer Discretionary)	20.1
Industry P/E (Personal Services)	15.9
vs Sector	8.3%
vs Industry	37.1%

Smart-Money Activity — SEC Form 4 / 13F / Congressional disclosures
Top Institutional Holder	BlackRock, Inc. ($96.11M)
Institutional Holders Tracked	10

Company
Sector	Consumer Discretionary
Industry	Personal Services
CEO	Paul A. Maleh
Employees	947
Country	US
IPO Date	1998-04-24

CRA International, Inc. earnings call transcripts

CRAI Q4 FY25 earnings call transcript (reported 2026-02-26) · analysis

All CRAI earnings calls

Related Companies (Personal Services; 8 comparable companies)

Data as of 2026-09-02.

Figures sourced from U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC EDGAR) filings and market data. Not personalized investment advice.