Short Interest in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) Expands By 11.6%

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,540,000 shares, a growth of 11.6% from the August 15th total of 1,380,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 446,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Charles River Laboratories International news, Director Richard F. Wallman acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 24th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $198.79 per share, for a total transaction of $198,790.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $198,790. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Charles River Laboratories International news, Director Richard F. Wallman acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 24th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $198.79 per share, for a total transaction of $198,790.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $198,790. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP William D. Barbo sold 5,763 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.24, for a total value of $1,251,954.12. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 3,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $780,326.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 7,934 shares of company stock worth $1,722,048. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Charles River Laboratories International

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wetherby Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Wetherby Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,793 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $509,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 834 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $175,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 1,117 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $235,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Future Fund LLC raised its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Future Fund LLC now owns 1,462 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $319,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, Tsfg LLC grew its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 49.1% during the 2nd quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 158 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.91% of the company’s stock.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of CRL traded up $3.09 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $210.97. The stock had a trading volume of 229,665 shares, compared to its average volume of 516,108. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $206.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $202.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.33. Charles River Laboratories International has a 1-year low of $181.22 and a 1-year high of $262.00.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 9th. The medical research company reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.05 billion. Charles River Laboratories International had a return on equity of 18.99% and a net margin of 11.58%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.77 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Charles River Laboratories International will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Charles River Laboratories International in a research report on Wednesday, September 13th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $212.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded Charles River Laboratories International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Bank of America increased their price target on Charles River Laboratories International from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Charles River Laboratories International from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 10th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded Charles River Laboratories International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $260.00 to $225.00 in a report on Monday, July 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $244.55.

About Charles River Laboratories International

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc, a non-clinical contract research organization, 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).