FORA Capital LLC Sells 2,961 Shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL)

FORA Capital LLC reduced its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) by 32.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,026 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 2,961 shares during the period. FORA Capital LLC’s holdings in Charles River Laboratories International were worth $1,187,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CRL. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 40.7% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,760,781 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $346,821,000 after purchasing an additional 509,163 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 24.6% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 825,905 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $170,615,000 after purchasing an additional 163,056 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,053,000. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 12.4% during the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,004,486 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $207,507,000 after purchasing an additional 110,725 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 73.6% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 239,913 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $49,561,000 after purchasing an additional 101,732 shares during the last quarter. 98.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on CRL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Charles River Laboratories International from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $270.00 to $205.00 in a report on Thursday, August 8th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $203.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $290.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $191.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $214.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Richard F. Wallman sold 6,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.12, for a total transaction of $1,430,930.52. Following the sale, the director now owns 12,386 shares in the company, valued at $2,676,862.32. The trade was a 34.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Charles River Laboratories International Price Performance

Charles River Laboratories International stock opened at $199.45 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.48. Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. has a 52 week low of $176.48 and a 52 week high of $275.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.19 and a beta of 1.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $194.77 and a 200-day moving average of $205.23.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical research company reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $975.99 million. Charles River Laboratories International had a return on equity of 14.29% and a net margin of 10.44%. Charles River Laboratories International’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.72 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 10.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Charles River Laboratories International announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, August 7th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical research company to reacquire up to 9.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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).