Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,660,000 shares, a decrease of 19.4% from the March 15th total of 3,300,000 shares. Approximately 5.5% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,230,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.2 days.

Charles River Laboratories International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRL traded down $3.35 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $102.70. 2,087,377 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 898,694. The company has a market cap of $5.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 684.67, a PEG ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 1.45. Charles River Laboratories International has a 1 year low of $91.86 and a 1 year high of $254.15. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $150.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $173.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.41.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The medical research company reported $2.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $983.63 million. Charles River Laboratories International had a return on equity of 14.69% and a net margin of 0.52%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.46 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Charles River Laboratories International will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Charles River Laboratories International news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 4,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.50, for a total transaction of $715,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,013 shares in the company, valued at $3,252,112.50. This trade represents a 18.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO James C. Foster purchased 6,075 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $165.01 per share, for a total transaction of $1,002,435.75. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 183,639 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,302,271.39. This trade represents a 3.42 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Charles River Laboratories International

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 1,071.4% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 164 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC raised its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 480.0% in the 1st quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 174 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 52.0% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new position in Charles River Laboratories International during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 311.5% in the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 251 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CRL. William Blair lowered shares of Charles River Laboratories International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup upgraded Charles River Laboratories International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $155.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Charles River Laboratories International from $177.00 to $173.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $190.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $175.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $182.00.

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).