Vanguard Group Inc. Acquires 26,446 Shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL)

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,980,306 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 26,446 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 11.66% of Charles River Laboratories International worth $1,413,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. APG Asset Management US Inc. acquired a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,321,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $101,319,000. abrdn plc grew its stake in Charles River Laboratories International by 872.0% in the fourth quarter. abrdn plc now owns 121,807 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $28,795,000 after acquiring an additional 109,275 shares during the period. Regency Capital Management Inc. DE purchased a new position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,703,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Charles River Laboratories International by 30.8% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 152,537 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $36,060,000 after buying an additional 35,921 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRL has been the subject of several research reports. Mizuho initiated coverage on Charles River Laboratories International in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $235.00 price target for the company. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $240.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a report on Thursday, June 6th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $290.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $282.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $256.38.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Performance

Shares of CRL stock opened at $209.80 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.68, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $223.81 and a 200 day moving average of $232.39. Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. has a 52 week low of $161.65 and a 52 week high of $275.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The medical research company reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $997.24 million. Charles River Laboratories International had a return on equity of 15.16% and a net margin of 10.81%. As a group, research analysts expect that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 1,304 shares of Charles River Laboratories International stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.97, for a total transaction of $295,968.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 23,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,282,953.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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).