Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Charles River Laboratories International was downgraded from a "strong-buy" to a "buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, reflecting changes in analyst sentiment regarding the stock.
• Despite the downgrade, other analysts have recently upgraded the stock, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $175.69.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS of $3.12, exceeding analyst expectations, and achieved revenue of $1.03 billion, indicating a 0.6% year-over-year increase.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Sunday.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on CRL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $118.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Cowen raised shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Citigroup raised shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $150.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $188.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Charles River Laboratories International currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $175.69.

Charles River Laboratories International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CRL traded down $5.0460 on Friday, hitting $154.5340. The company's stock had a trading volume of 394,843 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,013,719. Charles River Laboratories International has a 12-month low of $91.86 and a 12-month high of $230.02. The company has a market capitalization of $7.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -116.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.09 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $157.43 and a 200-day moving average of $148.78.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical research company reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.62. Charles River Laboratories International had a negative net margin of 1.69% and a positive return on equity of 15.74%. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $983.76 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.80 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Charles River Laboratories International will post 9.36 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.60, for a total transaction of $126,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,116 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,800,681.60. This represents a 3.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Charles River Laboratories International

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CRL. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its stake in Charles River Laboratories International by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 5,742 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $871,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Securities LLC boosted its stake in Charles River Laboratories International by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Securities LLC now owns 1,981 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $366,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Wahed Invest LLC boosted its stake in Charles River Laboratories International by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 1,321 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $244,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in Charles River Laboratories International by 93.5% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 178 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its stake in Charles River Laboratories International by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 7,142 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,072,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.91% of the company's stock.

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).