Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) Updates FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) updated its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 10.800-11.300 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 11.050. The company issued revenue guidance of $3.8 billion-$3.9 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $3.9 billion.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on CRL. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $200.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $165.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $205.86.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Performance

CRL stock traded down $3.72 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $177.96. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 978,093 shares, compared to its average volume of 940,297. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $170.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $183.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Charles River Laboratories International has a 1 year low of $132.58 and a 1 year high of $228.88. The stock has a market cap of $8.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -60.12, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.44.

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The medical research company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $995.83 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $977.46 million. Charles River Laboratories International had a positive return on equity of 15.60% and a negative net margin of 3.59%.The business’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.34 EPS. Charles River Laboratories International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.800-11.300 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Charles River Laboratories International will post 10.97 EPS for the current year.

More Charles River Laboratories International News

Here are the key news stories impacting Charles River Laboratories International this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Charles River reported Q1 EPS of $2.06, ahead of the $1.96 consensus, and revenue of $995.8 million, also above estimates. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Reuters noted steady demand for drug discovery and development services, suggesting the core business is stabilizing. Reuters article
• Neutral Sentiment: Management reaffirmed full-year 2026 EPS guidance of $10.80 to $11.30, which is in line with expectations but not a major upside surprise. Earnings release and transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Investors appear concerned that margin compression and weak organic growth may offset the earnings beat, which helps explain the stock’s weakness. Zacks article
• Negative Sentiment: One recent analyst note downgraded CRL to Sell, citing a strong share rally, muted near-term growth, and longer-term risks. Seeking Alpha article

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Compound Planning Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 19.6% in the 4th quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 1,668 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 115.8% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,696,150 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $537,828,000 after purchasing an additional 1,446,972 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Charles River Laboratories International by 236.2% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 35,170 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $7,016,000 after purchasing an additional 24,708 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its position in Charles River Laboratories International by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 6,316 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,260,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury raised its stake in shares of Charles River Laboratories International by 32.7% in the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 12,593 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,651,000 after buying an additional 3,104 shares during the period. 98.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Charles River Laboratories International

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc is a leading provider of research models and preclinical and clinical support services for the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries. The company’s core offerings include discovery, safety assessment, toxicology, and pathology services, as well as supply of laboratory animals and related diagnostics. Services extend across in vivo and in vitro testing, biologics testing, and support for advanced therapies, helping clients accelerate drug development from early discovery through regulatory submission.

Founded in 1947 in Wilmington, Massachusetts, Charles River has grown through strategic investments and acquisitions to establish a broad portfolio of capabilities.