Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Position in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 80,744 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 364 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.16% of Charles River Laboratories International worth $15,002,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 1,071.4% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 164 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 52.0% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its stake 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 buying an additional 115 shares during the period. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International during the 4th quarter valued at about $56,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $59,000. 98.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO James C. Foster purchased 6,075 shares of Charles River Laboratories International stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $165.01 per share, for a total transaction of $1,002,435.75. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 183,639 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,302,271.39. The trade was a 3.42 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Joseph W. Laplume sold 4,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.50, for a total transaction of $715,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,013 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,252,112.50. This represents a 18.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $177.00 to $173.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $175.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $220.00 to $184.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $185.00 price target (down from $250.00) on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on Charles River Laboratories International from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $189.77.

Charles River Laboratories International Price Performance

NYSE:CRL opened at $150.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.70 billion, a PE ratio of 1,003.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 1.45. Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. has a 52 week low of $146.64 and a 52 week high of $273.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $164.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $182.29.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The medical research company reported $2.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $983.63 million. Charles River Laboratories International had a return on equity of 14.69% and a net margin of 0.52%. The business’s revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.46 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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).