National Bank of Canada FI Sells 18,681 Shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL)

National Bank of Canada FI lessened its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL - Free Report) by 15.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 103,774 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 18,681 shares during the quarter. National Bank of Canada FI owned about 0.20% of Charles River Laboratories International worth $23,437,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CRL. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. boosted its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 18,120 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $4,284,000 after acquiring an additional 1,231 shares during the last quarter. Sapient Capital LLC bought a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $835,000. Malaga Cove Capital LLC lifted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 22.3% in the 4th quarter. Malaga Cove Capital LLC now owns 3,367 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $796,000 after buying an additional 615 shares during the last quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC lifted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 14.9% in the 4th quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC now owns 5,094 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,204,000 after buying an additional 659 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 473.5% in the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 757 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $179,000 after buying an additional 625 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.91% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on CRL. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. TheStreet upgraded Charles River Laboratories International from a "c+" rating to a "b-" rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Charles River Laboratories International from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Charles River Laboratories International from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $253.23.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRL traded up $1.03 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $236.30. 472,495 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 543,124. Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. has a one year low of $161.65 and a one year high of $275.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $251.61 and a 200 day moving average of $225.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.52. The company has a market cap of $12.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.44.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The medical research company reported $2.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.07. Charles River Laboratories International had a return on equity of 16.53% and a net margin of 11.49%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $991.25 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.98 earnings per share. Charles River Laboratories International's revenue was down 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 11.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Shannon M. Parisotto sold 5,882 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.20, for a total transaction of $1,418,738.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 2,596 shares in the company, valued at $626,155.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Shannon M. Parisotto sold 5,882 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.20, for a total transaction of $1,418,738.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 2,596 shares in the company, valued at $626,155.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Victoria L. Creamer sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.70, for a total value of $1,268,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 13,550 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,437,635. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,932 shares of company stock worth $3,693,663 over the last quarter. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Charles River Laboratories International 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).