Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $205.8571.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $213.00 price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a research note on Friday. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $200.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $251.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $165.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st.

Charles River Laboratories International Trading Down 2.0%

NYSE:CRL opened at $177.96 on Friday. Charles River Laboratories International has a one year low of $132.58 and a one year high of $228.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $170.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $183.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.78 billion, a P/E ratio of -47.33, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.44.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The medical research company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.10. Charles River Laboratories International had a negative net margin of 4.59% and a positive return on equity of 15.36%. The business had revenue of $995.83 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $977.46 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.34 earnings per share. Charles River Laboratories International’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Charles River Laboratories International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.800-11.300 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Charles River Laboratories International will post 11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 84.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 104,719 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $16,384,000 after buying an additional 47,954 shares in the last quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the third quarter worth approximately $1,935,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 14.5% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 317,179 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $49,626,000 after buying an additional 40,073 shares in the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the third quarter worth approximately $533,000. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP lifted its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 0.9% in the third quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 603,877 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $94,483,000 after buying an additional 5,100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.91% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Charles River Laboratories International

Here are the key news stories impacting Charles River Laboratories International this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Charles River reported Q1 EPS of $2.06, ahead of the $1.96 consensus, and revenue of $995.8 million, also above estimates. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Reuters noted steady demand for drug discovery and development services, suggesting the core business is stabilizing. Reuters article
• Neutral Sentiment: Management reaffirmed full-year 2026 EPS guidance of $10.80 to $11.30, which is in line with expectations but not a major upside surprise. Earnings release and transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Investors appear concerned that margin compression and weak organic growth may offset the earnings beat, which helps explain the stock’s weakness. Zacks article
• Negative Sentiment: One recent analyst note downgraded CRL to Sell, citing a strong share rally, muted near-term growth, and longer-term risks. Seeking Alpha article

About Charles River Laboratories International

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc is a leading provider of research models and preclinical and clinical support services for the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries. The company’s core offerings include discovery, safety assessment, toxicology, and pathology services, as well as supply of laboratory animals and related diagnostics. Services extend across in vivo and in vitro testing, biologics testing, and support for advanced therapies, helping clients accelerate drug development from early discovery through regulatory submission.

Founded in 1947 in Wilmington, Massachusetts, Charles River has grown through strategic investments and acquisitions to establish a broad portfolio of capabilities.