Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) Trading Down 3.4% – Should You Sell?

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) shares traded down 3.4% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $164.55 and last traded at $167.95. 127,730 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 712,822 shares. The stock had previously closed at $173.88.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $188.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price 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. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $155.00 to $175.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $205.00 to $166.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Charles River Laboratories International presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $189.77.

Charles River Laboratories International Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market cap of $8.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 1,115.26, a P/E/G ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 1.45. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $166.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $183.77.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The medical research company reported $2.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.16. Charles River Laboratories International had a net margin of 0.52% and a return on equity of 14.69%. The company had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $983.63 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.46 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Charles River Laboratories International

In other news, CEO James C. Foster purchased 6,075 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $165.01 per share, for a total transaction of $1,002,435.75. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 183,639 shares in the company, valued at $30,302,271.39. The trade was a 3.42 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Birgit Girshick purchased 1,514 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $164.63 per share, with a total value of $249,249.82. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer now owns 55,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,064,198.54. The trade was a 2.83 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Charles River Laboratories International

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 515,222 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $101,483,000 after buying an additional 32,311 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $211,000. Citigroup Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 10.7% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 236,141 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $46,513,000 after purchasing an additional 22,788 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 65.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 4,891 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $963,000 after purchasing an additional 1,943 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 6,355 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,252,000 after purchasing an additional 710 shares in the last quarter. 98.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Charles River Laboratories International Company Profile

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).