Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Acquires 29,621 Shares of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL - Free Report) by 152.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 49,030 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 29,621 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.10% of Charles River Laboratories International worth $9,657,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CRL. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 77.0% in the 2nd quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 131 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC acquired a new position in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International in the 1st quarter valued at $41,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in Charles River Laboratories International by 219.3% during the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 281 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the period. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its stake in Charles River Laboratories International by 1,072.7% in the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 258 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup cut Charles River Laboratories International from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $215.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI lowered shares of Charles River Laboratories International from an "outperform" rating to an "inline" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $190.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $228.00 to $203.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Charles River Laboratories International from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $270.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Charles River Laboratories International in a research report on Monday, October 14th. They set a "sell" rating and a $151.00 price objective for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Charles River Laboratories International currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $209.00.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Performance

NYSE CRL traded up $4.40 during trading on Monday, reaching $186.52. The company's stock had a trading volume of 498,049 shares, compared to its average volume of 601,168. Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. has a 12 month low of $161.65 and a 12 month high of $275.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $195.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $210.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The medical research company reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. Charles River Laboratories International had a return on equity of 14.96% and a net margin of 10.83%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. will post 10.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Charles River Laboratories International announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback 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 management 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).