Charles River Laboratories (CRL)
Health Care · $13.8B market cap · SEC CIK 0001100682
fundamentals score out of 100
Next reports on Nov 3, 2026, before the open, with analysts expecting $2.98 in earnings per share.
The case for CRL
- Up 79.6% over the past year.
The case against
- Losing money over the last year: net margin -6.0%, return on equity -8%.
- Revenue was flat on the year (-0.7%).
- Value is weak (28/100): no earnings to pay for, 3.4× sales, 3.8% free-cash yield.
- Stability is weak (32/100): beta 1.41, a 52% swing over the year.
What the score is made of
Each factor is half a curve over reported figures and half a rank among the other Health Care companies (momentum is judged against fixed thresholds only), and the five are blended by weight. It describes the last filing and the current price. It is not a forecast.
| Valuewhat you pay for the earnings, sales, assets and cash | 28 |
|---|---|
| Growthhow fast revenue and earnings are moving, this year and over five | 39 |
| Profitabilityhow much of the revenue becomes profit, and how much of that is cash | 13 |
| Momentumhow the price has behaved lately | 92 |
| Stabilityhow violently it moves, what it owes and what it pays you | 32 |
- It is losing money, so it has no P/E; that counts against value rather than being skipped.
- Each factor except momentum is half fixed thresholds, half rank among the 59 Health Care companies.
Key numbers
| Price / earnings | n/a |
|---|---|
| Price / book | 3.83× |
| Price / sales | 3.4× |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | -0.7% |
| EPS growth (YoY) | — |
| Gross margin | 35% |
| Operating margin | 2% |
| Net margin | -6% |
| Return on equity | -8% |
| Debt / equity | 0.93× |
| Current ratio | 1.35 |
| Dividend yield | none |
| Beta | 1.41 |
| 52-week range | $144.26 – $303.31 |
| Position in that range | 89% of the way up |
| 3-month return | +50.8% |
| 1-year return | +79.6% |
Five years of financials, as filed
Pulled from Charles River Laboratories's XBRL filings on SEC EDGAR. Italic rows are derived from the rows above.
| FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $4.0B | $4.0B | $4.1B | $4.0B | $3.5B |
| Operating income | $25.2M | $227M | $617M | $651M | $590M |
| Net income | -$144M | $22.2M | $475M | $486M | $391M |
| Operating cash flow | $738M | $735M | $684M | $620M | $761M |
| Capital expenditure | $219M | $233M | $319M | $325M | $229M |
| Total assets | $7.1B | $7.5B | $8.2B | $7.6B | $7.0B |
| Total liabilities | $3.9B | $4.0B | $4.5B | $4.6B | $4.4B |
| Shareholder equity | $3.2B | $3.5B | $3.6B | $3.0B | $2.5B |
| Cash | $214M | $195M | $277M | $234M | $241M |
| Free cash flow | $518M | $502M | $365M | $295M | $532M |
| Operating margin | 0.6% | 5.6% | 14.9% | 16.4% | 16.7% |
| Net margin | -3.6% | 0.5% | 11.5% | 12.2% | 11.0% |
| Diluted shares | 49.6M | 51.6M | 51.5M | 51.3M | 51.4M |
Share count is down 3.6% over 4 years. Buybacks have been shrinking the pie.
What Charles River Laboratories says it does
This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements regarding future events and the future results of Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. that are based on our current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about the industries in which we operate and the beliefs and assumptions of our management. Words such as "expect," "anticipate," "target," "goal," "project," "intend," "plan," "believe," "seek," "estimate," "will," "likely," "may," "designed," "would," "future," "can," "could" and other similar expressions, which are predictions of, indicate future events and trends or which do not relate to historical matters are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs and involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. For example, we may use forward-looking statements when addressing…
Risk factors CRL lists in its 10-K
- Financial and Accounting Risk Factors
- We bear financial risk for contracts that may be terminated or reduced in scope, underpriced, subject to cost overruns or delays
- Upgrading and integrating our business systems could result in implementation issues and business disruptions
- We have in the past experienced and in the future could experience unauthorized access into our information systems
- Uncertainties with respect to the development, deployment, and use of artificial intelligence present new risks and challenges and could adversely affect our business and reputation
- Failure to execute our business strategy could adversely impact our growth and profitability
- Failure to successfully realize cost savings from our restructuring initiatives would adversely impact our growth and profitability
- Our business is subject to risks relating to operating internationally, including changes in foreign currency exchange rates
- Our operations might be affected by the occurrence of a natural disaster or other catastrophic event
- Negative attention from special interest groups may impair our business
- Several of our product and service offerings, including our non-human primate supply, are dependent on a limited source of supply that, when interrupted, adversely affects our business
- Demand volatility and risk of credit losses from clients may adversely affect our business
- A reduction or delay in government funding of R&D may adversely affect our business
- Changes in government regulation or in practices relating to the pharmaceutical or biotechnology industries, including potential healthcare reform, could decrease the need for the services we provide