Retirement Systems of Alabama Cuts Stake in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL)

Retirement Systems of Alabama reduced its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,305 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 287 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Charles River Laboratories International were worth $2,673,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 28,115 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $6,646,000 after acquiring an additional 4,212 shares in the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the 4th quarter worth $709,000. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers Inc. ID raised its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers Inc. ID now owns 142,904 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $33,783,000 after purchasing an additional 9,723 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,603 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International during the fourth quarter valued at $62,000. 98.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Performance

Shares of CRL opened at $236.30 on Wednesday. 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 1.16, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market cap of $12.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.66, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.44. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $251.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $225.17.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The medical research company reported $2.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.07. Charles River Laboratories International had a net margin of 11.49% and a return on equity of 16.53%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $991.25 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.98 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 11.01 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of 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. Argus raised their price target on Charles River Laboratories International from $240.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, TheStreet raised Charles River Laboratories International from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.23.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP William D. Barbo sold 4,050 shares of Charles River Laboratories International stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.50, for a total transaction of $1,006,425.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 22,879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,685,431.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Shannon M. Parisotto sold 5,882 shares of Charles River Laboratories International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.20, for a total transaction of $1,418,738.40. Following 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 SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP William D. Barbo sold 4,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.50, for a total transaction of $1,006,425.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 22,879 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,685,431.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,932 shares of company stock worth $3,693,663 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

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).