Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $149.79, but opened at $157.42. Charles River Laboratories International shares last traded at $161.99, with a volume of 214,468 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $118.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays raised their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Charles River Laboratories International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $188.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $174.54.

Charles River Laboratories International Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $8.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -273.74, a PEG ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 1.49. The business's fifty day moving average price is $147.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $150.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.16.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $984.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $942.34 million. Charles River Laboratories International had a negative net margin of 0.66% and a positive return on equity of 15.19%. The business's revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.27 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.41, for a total transaction of $72,705.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 19,513 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,837,385.33. The trade was a 2.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Charles River Laboratories International

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International in the first quarter worth about $1,231,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 15.4% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 6,118 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $952,000 after acquiring an additional 817 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 13.1% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 44,500 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $6,698,000 after acquiring an additional 5,148 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 61.6% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,398 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $210,000 after acquiring an additional 533 shares during the period. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International in the first quarter worth about $213,000. Institutional investors 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).