The Goldman Sachs Group Lowers Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) Price Target to $250.00

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) had its price objective lowered by The Goldman Sachs Group from $290.00 to $250.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the medical research company’s stock.

CRL has been the subject of several other reports. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They set an equal weight rating and a $230.00 price target for the company. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They set a neutral rating and a $235.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Charles River Laboratories International from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $270.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Thursday. Argus reaffirmed a hold rating on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut shares of Charles River Laboratories International from an outperform rating to a neutral rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $239.00 to $191.00 in a research note on Thursday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Charles River Laboratories International presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $232.79.

Charles River Laboratories International Price Performance

NYSE CRL opened at $200.97 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $214.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $231.41. Charles River Laboratories International has a 52-week low of $161.65 and a 52-week high of $275.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.75. The stock has a market cap of $10.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.64, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.38.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The medical research company reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $997.24 million. Charles River Laboratories International had a return on equity of 15.16% and a net margin of 10.81%. Analysts anticipate that Charles River Laboratories International will post 10.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Charles River Laboratories International announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, August 7th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical research company to buy up to 9.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Charles River Laboratories International

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,455,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 20.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 561,075 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $115,912,000 after purchasing an additional 93,682 shares during the last quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International during the 2nd quarter valued at $122,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new stake in Charles River Laboratories International during the 2nd quarter valued at $434,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 3.7% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 319,177 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $65,936,000 after buying an additional 11,514 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.91% of the company’s stock.

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).