Clearbridge Investments LLC Trims Holdings in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL)

Clearbridge Investments LLC lessened its stake in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) by 28.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 775,213 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 315,779 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Charles River Laboratories International were worth $143,104,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake 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 in the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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 worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 77.7% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 263 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the 4th quarter valued at about $56,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International during the third quarter worth about $59,000. 98.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on CRL shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Charles River Laboratories International from $177.00 to $173.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Barclays dropped their target price on Charles River Laboratories International from $205.00 to $166.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $175.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $220.00 to $184.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Charles River Laboratories International currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $189.77.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 4,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.50, for a total transaction of $715,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,013 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,252,112.50. This trade represents a 18.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Birgit Girshick purchased 1,514 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $164.63 per share, for a total transaction of $249,249.82. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 55,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,064,198.54. The trade was a 2.83 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CRL opened at $155.60 on Monday. Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. has a 1 year low of $150.79 and a 1 year high of $273.32. The firm has a market cap of $7.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 1,037.35, a PEG ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 1.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $164.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.60. 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 earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The medical research company reported $2.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.16. Charles River Laboratories International had a return on equity of 14.69% and a net margin of 0.52%. The business had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $983.63 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.46 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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).