Crawford & Company (NYSE:CRD.B) Stock Price Down 5.3% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Crawford & Company shares fell 5.3% to approximately $12.40 in mid-day trading, despite trading volume rising 11% above its average.
• The company’s latest quarterly results were mixed: earnings per share of $0.38 exceeded estimates of $0.27, while revenue of $321.44 million fell short of the $336.09 million consensus forecast.
• Insiders sold more than 1.02 million shares worth about $13.1 million over the past three months, including a 1 million-share sale by major shareholder Jesse C. Crawford; meanwhile, Zacks upgraded the stock to “strong buy.”

Shares of Crawford & Company (NYSE:CRD.B - Get Free Report) were down 5.3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $12.31 and last traded at $12.4020. 18,318 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 11% from the average daily volume of 16,433 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.10.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Zacks Research raised shares of Crawford & Company from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Strong Buy".

Crawford & Company Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $580.70 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.89 and a beta of 0.64. 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 stock's fifty day moving average is $11.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.58.

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

Insider Activity

In other Crawford & Company news, major shareholder Jesse C. Crawford sold 1,000,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.81, for a total transaction of $12,810,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 4,447,188 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $56,968,478.28. The trade was a 18.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrew Bart sold 10,118 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.17, for a total transaction of $133,254.06. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 101,277 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,333,818.09. This represents a 9.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 1,020,093 shares of company stock worth $13,075,773. Insiders own 51.04% of the company's stock.

About Crawford & Company

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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