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Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (CRL) is a global provider of non-clinical drug development and research services that support pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and academic institutions in the discovery, development, and manufacture of new therapies. Based in Wilmington, Massachusetts, the company plays a key role in the early stages of the drug development process.
Companies worth between $2 billion and $10 billion are typically classified as “mid-cap stocks,” and CRL fits the label perfectly, with its market cap of $8.9 billion, underscoring its size, influence, and dominance within the diagnostics & research industry.
This healthcare company has dipped 19.2% from its 52-week high of $228.88, reached on Jan. 13. Shares of CRL have climbed 17.8% over the past three months, notably outperforming the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF’s (XLV) 1.5% drop during the same time frame.
Moreover, on a YTD basis, shares of CRL are down 20.8%, compared to XLV’s 3.5% loss. In the longer term, CRL has fallen 5.6% over the past 52 weeks, lagging XLV’s 12.1% uptick over the same time frame.
To confirm its bullish trend, CRL has been trading above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages since late May.
On June 17, shares of Charles River Laboratories rose more than 2% after Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to “Overweight” from “Equal Weight” and raised its price target to $220. The bullish call reflected the firm’s growing confidence in the contract research organization’s recovery prospects, citing improving demand trends and easing headwinds in the biotechnology funding environment.
Top rival IQVIA Holdings Inc. (IQV) has gained 8.5% over the past 52 weeks, outpacing CRL. However, IQV’s 25.6% YTD fall underperforms CRL.
Despite CRL’s recent underperformance, analysts remain very optimistic about its prospects. The stock has a consensus rating of “Strong Buy” from the 16 analysts covering it, and the mean price target of $218.93 suggests an 18.3% premium to its current price levels.
On the date of publication, Kritika Sarmah did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.