UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp Lowers Stock Position in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL)

Key Points

• UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp reduced its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 15.6%, now owning 34,247 shares valued at approximately $5.15 million.
• Several institutional investors modified their stakes in Charles River, with significant increases from Assenagon Asset Management (up 1,721.1%) and SG Americas Securities (up 16,153.2%).
• Charles River Laboratories reported an EPS of $2.34 for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, but its revenue fell 2.7% year-over-year to $984.17 million.

UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp lessened its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL - Free Report) by 15.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 34,247 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 6,325 shares during the quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp owned approximately 0.07% of Charles River Laboratories International worth $5,155,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CRL. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted 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 worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co. purchased a new position in Charles River Laboratories International during the first quarter valued at $31,000. Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new position in Charles River Laboratories International during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 311.5% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 251 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new position in Charles River Laboratories International during the fourth quarter valued at $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Cowen raised Charles River Laboratories International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $118.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup upgraded Charles River Laboratories International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $150.00 to $200.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded Charles River Laboratories International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $179.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $174.54.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Performance

NYSE CRL traded down $2.75 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $166.89. The company's stock had a trading volume of 821,687 shares, compared to its average volume of 783,127. Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. has a 12 month low of $91.86 and a 12 month high of $236.88. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $153.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $149.56. The company has a market cap of $8.20 billion, a P/E ratio of -256.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.65 and a beta of 1.48. 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 released its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $984.17 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $942.34 million. Charles River Laboratories International had a positive return on equity of 15.19% and a negative net margin of 0.66%. Charles River Laboratories International's revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.27 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Charles River Laboratories International

In other Charles River Laboratories International news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.41, for a total value of $72,705.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 19,513 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,837,385.33. This trade represents a 2.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.30% 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).