What Happened?

Shares of lab services company Charles River Laboratories (NYSE: CRL) jumped 2.9% in the afternoon session after BofA Securities upgraded the stock and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission concluded its investigation into the company with no enforcement action. 

The regulatory investigation revolved around the sourcing of non-human primates and related disclosures. The conclusion of the probe without any penalty removed a key uncertainty for the company and its investors. 

Adding to the positive news, BofA Securities raised its rating on the stock from Neutral to Buy, increasing its price target to $225. The firm cited Charles River's strong position in early-stage pharmaceutical research and development. In response to the developments, the company's stock reached a new 52-week high.

After the initial pop the shares cooled down to $203.48, up 3.3% from previous close.

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What Is The Market Telling Us

Charles River Laboratories’s shares are quite volatile and have had 17 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.

The previous big move we wrote about was 19 days ago when the stock gained 6.1% on the news that the company provided an encouraging business update at an investor conference, highlighting positive demand trends. 

During a presentation at the Evercore Healthcare Conference, management reported that demand in its Discovery and Safety Assessment (DSA) segment showed improvement. Specifically, the company's net book-to-bill ratio, a key indicator comparing new orders to completed work, had risen each month since the start of the third fiscal quarter. While Charles River noted that holiday seasonality could affect short-term bookings, the company expressed optimism about the positive momentum and upward trends observed since the middle of 2025.

Charles River Laboratories is up 11.4% since the beginning of the year, and at $203.48 per share, has set a new 52-week high. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Charles River Laboratories’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $805.46.

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