Crawford & Company (NYSE:CRD.B) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Crawford & Company shares gapped down from a prior close of $11.95 to open at $11.50, but later traded near $11.92 on volume of 3,151 shares.
• Zacks Research upgraded the stock to “Strong Buy”, matching the current consensus rating. The company also exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $0.38 versus the $0.27 estimate, although revenue fell short of forecasts.
• Insiders sold more than 1.02 million shares worth approximately $13.1 million over the past 90 days, including a 1-million-share sale by major shareholder Jesse C. Crawford.

Crawford & Company (NYSE:CRD.B - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $11.95, but opened at $11.50. Crawford & Company shares last traded at $11.9160, with a volume of 3,151 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Zacks Research upgraded Crawford & Company from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Strong Buy".

Crawford & Company Trading Up 0.5%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $578.85 million, a P/E ratio of 24.81 and a beta of 0.64. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $11.48 and a 200-day moving average of $10.60.

Crawford & Company (NYSE:CRD.B - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $321.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $336.09 million. Crawford & Company had a return on equity of 28.15% and a net margin of 1.81%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Crawford & Company will post 1.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Crawford & Company news, major shareholder Jesse C. Crawford sold 1,000,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.81, for a total value of $12,810,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,447,188 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,968,478.28. This represents a 18.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Andrew Bart sold 3,305 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.36, for a total value of $44,154.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 86,395 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,154,237.20. This represents a 3.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,020,093 shares of company stock worth $13,075,773. Insiders own 51.04% of the company's stock.

Crawford & Company Company Profile

Crawford & Company is a global provider of independent claims management and related services for the insurance and risk management industries. The company supports insurers, brokers, corporations, and government entities with services that span the claims lifecycle, including loss adjusting, claims administration, third-party administration, and claims management technology.

Its offerings cover property and casualty claims, workers' compensation, automobile claims, transportation-related losses, specialty claims, and legal settlement services.

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