Hilton Capital Management LLC Boosts Stake in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL)

Hilton Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) by 17.4% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 7,658 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,135 shares during the quarter. Hilton Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Charles River Laboratories International were worth $1,508,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 40.7% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,760,781 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $346,821,000 after buying an additional 509,163 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 2,733.4% during the 1st quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 247,501 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $67,060,000 after acquiring an additional 238,766 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 24.6% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 825,905 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $170,615,000 after acquiring an additional 163,056 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,053,000. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC boosted its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 12.4% during the second 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 in the last quarter. 98.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CRL shares. StockNews.com cut Charles River Laboratories International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $203.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Charles River Laboratories International from $191.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $230.00 to $210.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, CLSA lowered shares of Charles River Laboratories International from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $164.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Monday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $214.38.

Insider Activity at Charles River Laboratories International

In other Charles River Laboratories International news, Director Richard F. Wallman sold 6,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $2,676,862.32. The trade was a 34.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Charles River Laboratories International Price Performance

Shares of CRL opened at $187.90 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.84 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.48. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $195.05 and its 200-day moving average is $206.43. Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. has a one year low of $176.48 and a one year high of $275.00.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The medical research company reported $2.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.16. Charles River Laboratories International had a return on equity of 14.29% and a net margin of 10.44%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $975.99 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.72 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 10.19 EPS for the current year.

Charles River Laboratories International announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan 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 repurchase up to 9.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Charles River Laboratories International 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).