Iridian Asset Management LLC CT Acquires 9,454 Shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL)

Iridian Asset Management LLC CT increased its position in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL - Free Report) by 18.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 60,419 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 9,454 shares during the quarter. Charles River Laboratories International comprises about 2.9% of Iridian Asset Management LLC CT's holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Iridian Asset Management LLC CT owned 0.12% of Charles River Laboratories International worth $9,094,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rothschild Investment LLC raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. purchased a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. GeoWealth Management LLC raised its stake in Charles River Laboratories International by 311.5% in the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 251 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $48,000. 98.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CRL. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 5th. TD Cowen raised shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $179.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target 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. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $118.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $150.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $174.54.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 500 shares of Charles River Laboratories International stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 19,513 shares in the company, valued at $2,837,385.33. The trade was a 2.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Charles River Laboratories International Trading Down 2.4%

Shares of NYSE CRL traded down $3.88 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $159.78. The stock had a trading volume of 518,978 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,034,082. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.43. Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.86 and a 1 year high of $254.15. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $144.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $151.59. The firm has a market cap of $7.85 billion, a P/E ratio of -245.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 1.49.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The medical research company reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.28. Charles River Laboratories International had a negative net margin of 0.66% and a positive return on equity of 15.19%. The company had revenue of $984.17 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $942.34 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.27 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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).