Franklin Resources Inc. Trims Stake in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL)

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 647,780 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 16,675 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Charles River Laboratories International were worth $119,580,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 1,071.4% during the 4th 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. lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 77.7% in the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 263 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the fourth quarter worth $56,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International during the 3rd quarter valued at $59,000. Institutional investors own 98.91% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 4,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.50, for a total value of $715,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,013 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,252,112.50. This trade represents a 18.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Birgit Girshick purchased 1,514 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $164.63 per share, for a total transaction of $249,249.82. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief operating officer now directly owns 55,058 shares in the company, 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. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE CRL opened at $149.30 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. has a 12-month low of $142.76 and a 12-month high of $264.71. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $163.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $181.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 995.33, a P/E/G ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 1.45.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The medical research company reported $2.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarterly revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.46 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CRL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays cut their price target on Charles River Laboratories International from $205.00 to $166.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. William Blair downgraded Charles River Laboratories International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Charles River Laboratories International from $220.00 to $184.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $188.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $175.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $189.77.

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).