Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the seventeen analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have assigned a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $171.85.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on CRL shares. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $175.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $175.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $179.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $190.00 to $170.00 in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $188.00 to $182.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Charles River Laboratories International news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.41, for a total value of $72,705.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,513 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,837,385.33. This trade represents a 2.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Charles River Laboratories International

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CRL. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 480.0% in the first quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 174 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 93.5% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 178 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International during the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International during the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 311.5% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.91% of the company’s stock.

Charles River Laboratories International Price Performance

NYSE:CRL opened at $151.02 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $7.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1,006.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company’s 50-day moving average is $128.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $158.06. Charles River Laboratories International has a 12-month low of $91.86 and a 12-month high of $254.15.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The medical research company reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $984.17 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $942.34 million. Charles River Laboratories International had a net margin of 0.52% and a return on equity of 14.69%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.27 EPS. Research analysts expect that Charles River Laboratories International will post 9.36 EPS for the current year.

About Charles River Laboratories International

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc provides drug discovery, non-clinical development, and safety testing services in the United States, Europe, Canada, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Research Models and Services (RMS), Discovery and Safety Assessment (DSA), and Manufacturing Solutions (Manufacturing).