Short Interest in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) Rises By 26.3%

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 2,930,000 shares, a growth of 26.3% from the February 13th total of 2,320,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,000,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.9 days. Approximately 5.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. CLSA cut shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $164.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, November 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $175.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $177.00 to $173.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $198.36.

Charles River Laboratories International Trading Up 1.1 %

CRL stock traded up $2.01 on Tuesday, reaching $177.02. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,011,890 shares, compared to its average volume of 711,526. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $167.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $184.33. Charles River Laboratories International has a 12-month low of $150.79 and a 12-month high of $274.77. The firm has a market cap of $9.05 billion, a PE ratio of 1,180.13, a PEG ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 1.45. 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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $1 billion during 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 company’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 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Charles River Laboratories International will post 9.36 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Charles River Laboratories International

In other Charles River Laboratories International news, CEO James C. Foster purchased 6,075 shares of Charles River Laboratories International stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $165.01 per share, for a total transaction of $1,002,435.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 183,639 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,302,271.39. The trade was a 3.42 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Birgit Girshick purchased 1,514 shares of Charles River Laboratories International stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $164.63 per share, for a total transaction of $249,249.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 55,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,064,198.54. The trade was a 2.83 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Charles River Laboratories International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 1,071.4% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 164 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 52.0% during the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 1,153.3% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 188 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the period. Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new position in Charles River Laboratories International during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 311.5% during 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 during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.91% of the company’s stock.

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).