Wall Street Zen Upgrades Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) to "Strong-Buy"

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen has upgraded Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating.
• Analysts have raised their price targets for CRL, with Barclays setting a target of $165.00, TD Cowen at $179.00, and Citigroup at $200.00.
• CRL reported a recent quarterly earnings per share of $3.12, exceeding expectations of $2.50, while the company's revenue increased by 0.6% year-over-year to $1.03 billion.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Citigroup raised Charles River Laboratories International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $150.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Cowen raised Charles River Laboratories International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Charles River Laboratories International from $118.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised Charles River Laboratories International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $188.00 to $182.00 in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Charles River Laboratories International currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $175.69.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Performance

NYSE:CRL traded up $3.47 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $152.40. The stock had a trading volume of 576,256 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,280,483. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.10. Charles River Laboratories International has a 1-year low of $91.86 and a 1-year high of $230.02. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $155.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $149.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.50 billion, a P/E ratio of -114.56, a PEG ratio of 4.74 and a beta of 1.48.

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. Charles River Laboratories International had a negative net margin of 1.69% and a positive return on equity of 15.74%. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $983.76 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.80 EPS. The business's revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Charles River Laboratories International will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Charles River Laboratories International

In related news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.04, for a total transaction of $60,016.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 24,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,738,396.64. This trade represents a 1.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Charles River Laboratories International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Teacher Retirement System of Texas purchased a new stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the first quarter worth about $1,231,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 15.4% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 6,118 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $952,000 after buying an additional 817 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 13.1% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 44,500 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $6,698,000 after buying an additional 5,148 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 61.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,398 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $210,000 after buying an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the 1st quarter worth $213,000. 98.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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).