Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) Upgraded at UBS Group

Key Points

• UBS Group upgraded Charles River Laboratories International to “strong buy,” adding to a largely positive analyst outlook. The stock has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $300.11.
• Charles River reported quarterly EPS of $3.02, exceeding analysts’ $2.77 estimate, while revenue reached $1 billion. However, revenue declined 2.7% year over year, and the company provided fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $11.15–$11.45.
• Insiders sold shares worth approximately $25.7 million over the past 90 days, while institutional investors own 98.91% of the stock. Shares opened at $295.91, near the company’s 52-week high of $303.30.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at UBS Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on CRL. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Argus set a $330.00 price target on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a report on Thursday, September 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $180.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $250.00 target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $300.00 target price on Charles River Laboratories International in a research note on Monday, August 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Charles River Laboratories International has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $300.11.

Charles River Laboratories International Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of Charles River Laboratories International stock opened at $295.91 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.13 billion, a PE ratio of -61.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.40. Charles River Laboratories International has a 52 week low of $146.20 and a 52 week high of $303.30. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $275.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $216.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.35.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The medical research company reported $3.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.25. Charles River Laboratories International had a positive return on equity of 15.75% and a negative net margin of 5.96%.The company had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $980.53 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.12 EPS. Charles River Laboratories International's quarterly revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Charles River Laboratories International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.150-11.450 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Charles River Laboratories International will post 11.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Shannon M. Parisotto sold 2,039 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.12, for a total transaction of $599,710.68. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 4,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,413,834.84. This trade represents a 29.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Birgit Girshick sold 6,500 shares of Charles River Laboratories International stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.90, for a total value of $1,819,350.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 36,013 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,080,038.70. This trade represents a 15.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 90,990 shares of company stock valued at $25,731,388 in the last ninety days. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 36.9% during the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 19,306 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $4,378,000 after acquiring an additional 5,200 shares in the last quarter. Avidity Partners Management LP bought a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International in the first quarter valued at $1,670,000. Maverick Capital Ltd. purchased a new position in Charles River Laboratories International during the 1st quarter valued at $1,411,000. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 21.8% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 56,972 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $9,828,000 after purchasing an additional 10,207 shares during the period. Finally, Quantitative Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Charles River Laboratories International in the 2nd quarter worth $1,360,000. 98.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Charles River Laboratories International Company Profile

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc is a contract research organization that provides products and services to support pharmaceutical, biotechnology and academic research. The company helps customers discover, develop and manufacture new medicines, vaccines and other healthcare products.

Its offerings include research models and related services, preclinical drug discovery, pharmacology, toxicology, bioanalysis and safety assessment. Charles River also provides laboratory and manufacturing solutions for biologics, cell and gene therapies, microbial testing and other specialized life sciences applications.

Founded in 1947, Charles River Laboratories serves customers worldwide through operations across North America, Europe and Asia.

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