Analysts Set Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) Price Target at $209.00

Shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) have received a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the fifteen analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $209.00.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CRL shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Charles River Laboratories International from $191.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 20th. Baird R W downgraded Charles River Laboratories International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays dropped their target price on Charles River Laboratories International from $230.00 to $210.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on Charles River Laboratories International in a report on Monday, October 14th. They set a “sell” rating and a $151.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on Charles River Laboratories International from $290.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CRL. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 40.7% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,760,781 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $346,821,000 after acquiring an additional 509,163 shares in the last quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. grew its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 2,733.4% in the 1st quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 247,501 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $67,060,000 after acquiring an additional 238,766 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 24.6% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 825,905 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $170,615,000 after purchasing an additional 163,056 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Charles River Laboratories International during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,053,000. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC boosted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 12.4% during the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,004,486 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $207,507,000 after purchasing an additional 110,725 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.91% of the company’s stock.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Performance

Charles River Laboratories International stock opened at $180.96 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $193.72 and its 200-day moving average is $209.29. The company has a market cap of $9.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.12 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.21. Charles River Laboratories International has a 12 month low of $166.87 and a 12 month high of $275.00.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The medical research company reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. Charles River Laboratories International had a return on equity of 14.96% and a net margin of 10.83%. Equities analysts anticipate that Charles River Laboratories International will post 10.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Charles River Laboratories International declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, August 7th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical research company to buy up to 9.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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).