Baird R W Upgrades Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) to Strong-Buy

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) was upgraded by Baird R W from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Charles River Laboratories International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $150.00 to $200.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $186.93.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE CRL opened at $167.99 on Thursday. Charles River Laboratories International has a 52-week low of $91.86 and a 52-week high of $222.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -126.31, a PEG ratio of 4.83 and a beta of 1.53. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $168.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $155.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The medical research company reported $2.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.11. Charles River Laboratories International had a positive return on equity of 15.74% and a negative net margin of 1.69%.The business had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $990.43 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.59 EPS. Charles River Laboratories International’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Charles River Laboratories International will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.60, for a total value of $126,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,116 shares in the company, valued at $3,800,681.60. This trade represents a 3.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Charles River Laboratories International

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CenterBook Partners LP raised its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 534.0% in the third quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 23,794 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,723,000 after acquiring an additional 20,041 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 104.4% in the 3rd quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 4,410 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $690,000 after purchasing an additional 2,252 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 82.4% in the 3rd quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 186 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,839,743 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $913,686,000 after purchasing an additional 27,989 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 14.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 317,179 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $49,626,000 after purchasing an additional 40,073 shares in the last quarter. 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).