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

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) saw a significant growth in short interest in 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. Currently, 5.8% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,000,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.9 days.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Performance

Shares of CRL stock traded up $3.98 on Monday, reaching $175.02. The stock had a trading volume of 1,013,270 shares, compared to its average volume of 710,653. 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 has a 1 year low of $150.79 and a 1 year high of $274.77. The stock has a market cap of $8.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 1,166.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $167.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $184.33.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $983.63 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.46 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Charles River Laboratories International will post 9.36 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Charles River Laboratories International

In other Charles River Laboratories International news, CEO James C. Foster bought 6,075 shares of Charles River Laboratories International stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $165.01 per share, with a total value of $1,002,435.75. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 183,639 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,302,271.39. This represents a 3.42 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Birgit Girshick purchased 1,514 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $164.63 per share, with a total value of $249,249.82. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer now owns 55,058 shares in the company, valued at $9,064,198.54. This represents a 2.83 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Charles River Laboratories International

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake 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 worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 1,153.3% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 188 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 173 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 purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC increased its position in 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 worth $46,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. 98.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CRL. William Blair downgraded shares of Charles River Laboratories International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America lowered their price target on Charles River Laboratories International from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup upgraded shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target 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 assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $198.36.

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).