Royal Bank of Canada Acquires 472,606 Shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. $CRL

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada significantly increased its stake in Charles River Laboratories International by 304.7%, now owning 627,710 shares valued at approximately $94.48 million.
• Multiple large investors also boosted their stakes in the company, including Rothschild Investment LLC and Brooklyn Investment Group, indicating strong institutional interest in Charles River Laboratories.
• Analysts have generally upgraded their ratings for the stock, with recommendations ranging from "buy" to "hold," reflecting a positive market outlook for Charles River Laboratories International.

Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL - Free Report) by 304.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 627,710 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 472,606 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned about 1.28% of Charles River Laboratories International worth $94,484,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 480.0% during the first quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 174 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 93.5% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 178 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. bought a new stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 83.7% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 474 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Groupe la Francaise boosted its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 44.6% during the 1st quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 590 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $89,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. 98.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on CRL shares. TD Cowen raised Charles River Laboratories International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $179.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays raised their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Citigroup raised Charles River Laboratories International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $150.00 to $200.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $188.00 to $182.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. 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 company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Charles River Laboratories International has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $175.69.

Insider Transactions at Charles River Laboratories International

In related news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 800 shares of Charles River Laboratories International stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.60, for a total value of $126,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,116 shares in the company, valued at $3,800,681.60. The trade was a 3.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE CRL traded down $1.56 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $162.43. The company had a trading volume of 822,344 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,231,814. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. has a 1-year low of $91.86 and a 1-year high of $230.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.99 billion, a P/E ratio of -121.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.24 and a beta of 1.47. The firm's 50 day moving average is $160.62 and its 200-day moving average is $148.93.

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

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).