Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.12 EPS

Charles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) released its earnings results on Wednesday. The medical research company reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.12, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $982.73 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $960.36 million. Charles River Laboratories International had a net margin of 1.01% and a return on equity of 16.95%. Charles River Laboratories International’s revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.43 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Charles River Laboratories International’s conference call:

• Third-quarter revenue grew 4.7%, the strongest growth in three years, and adjusted EPS rose 27% to $3.09, both ahead of expectations. Charles River raised its 2026 organic revenue growth outlook to at least 1.5% and EPS guidance to $11.35–$11.55.
• Demand strengthened in DSA, with organic growth of 5.9%, bookings up 32% year over year, and book-to-bill of 1.09x for a fourth consecutive quarter above 1.0x. Management expects mid-single-digit DSA growth in Q4, while manufacturing returned to 7.4% organic growth.
• Operating margin expanded year over year, and the company expects further sequential improvement in Q4; its Create the Future program is projected to generate more than $300 million in cumulative savings over four years. Management expects 2027 margin improvement to exceed its previously discussed 75-basis-point annual average.
• RMS revenue declined 0.6% organically as weaker North American research-model demand and academic and government funding pressure offset growth in China. Management expects a modest reduction in RMS growth in Q4 and said this segment’s recovery may take time.
• DSA pricing remains a constraint: current growth is volume-driven, and reduced discounting has not yet benefited bookings or revenue. If trends hold, management does not expect pricing gains to affect revenue until at least the second half of 2027.

Charles River Laboratories International Stock Performance

CRL stock traded up $24.89 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $337.91. 1,061,677 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 966,466. Charles River Laboratories International has a 1-year low of $146.20 and a 1-year high of $379.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $304.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $224.59. The firm has a market cap of $16.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 371.33, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Charles River Laboratories International news, Director Nancy C. Andrews sold 573 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.24, for a total transaction of $163,442.52. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,438 shares in the company, valued at approximately $410,175.12. This represents a 28.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Shannon Parisotto sold 3,714 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.66, for a total value of $1,038,657.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,344,325.62. The trade was a 43.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 102,299 shares of company stock worth $31,050,863. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CRL. Zacks Research cut Charles River Laboratories International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Evercore set a $330.00 price target on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a report on Friday, September 25th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Charles River Laboratories International from $357.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Charles River Laboratories International in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Charles River Laboratories International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $308.17.

About Charles River Laboratories International

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc is a contract research and laboratory services company that supports pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device and academic research organizations. The company provides products and services used throughout the drug-development process, from early discovery and research through preclinical testing and manufacturing support.

Its offerings include research models, laboratory animal management, discovery and safety assessment services, toxicology testing, bioanalysis, and support for biologic, cell and gene therapy programs.