| Factor | Score | Distribution | Value | Avg | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Valuation | 29 | — | 17.8x | Bottom tier | |
Growth | 14 | -0.7% | 7.1% | Bottom tier | |
Quality | 28 | 0.6% | 4.5% | Bottom tier | |
Safety | 44 | 7.2x | 2.6x | Around median | |
Capital Return | 37 | — | 2.12% | Bottom tier | |
Momentum | 95 | 64.1% | 2.9% | Top tier | |
Sentiment | 46 | 10 | 3 | Around median |
Estimates — analyst targets and a simplified DCF, not investment advice.
Ten ratios that matter, each compared against its sector median and average — so you can see whether a number is rich or cheap relative to peers in the same sector.
Charles River Laboratories provides contract scientific services to the biopharmaceutical sector through three principal segments. The Drug Discovery and Safety Assessment segment, DSA, generated $607 million in revenue in Q2 FY2026 and provides services including IND-enabling studies, regulated safety assessments, and bioanalysis. The Research Models and Services segment, RMS, generated $209 million in revenue, while the Manufacturing segment recorded $188 million from activities including Microbial Solutions and biologics testing; the company also benefits from NGS services added through PathoQuest and from non-human primate supplies from its suppliers in Cambodia and Mauritius.
Q2 FY2026 revenue was approximately $1.0 billion according to EDGAR filings, with a net loss of $1.5 million and a GAAP diluted loss per share of $0.03. On a non-GAAP basis, the operating margin was 20.5%, up 420 basis points from the previous quarter, and earnings per share reached $3.02, representing sequential growth of 47%. Total revenue grew organically by 0.1%, marking the first return to organic growth since Q3 FY2023, with DSA growing by 0.2% and Manufacturing by 1.3%, versus a 1.4% contraction in RMS.
The accounting profitability picture differs from adjusted operating performance; during the twelve-month period ended Q2 FY2026, the company recorded revenue of $4.0 billion and a net loss of $184.7 million. The quarterly margin improvement came partly from the May 2026 divestiture of selected European discovery services sites and the CDMO and Cell Solutions businesses, which helped the Manufacturing segment margin reach 37.8%. At the same time, the company raised its FY2026 outlook despite expecting reported revenue to continue declining because of the impact of those divestitures.
The average analyst price target is $267.6, within a wide range of $219 to $300, with a consensus Buy rating; the average is approximately 11.8% below the 52-week range high of $303.31, while the highest target is close to that high. No positive P/E ratio is available because of the twelve-month net loss of $184.7 million and loss per share of $3.77, so CRL's valuation depends more heavily on achieving the adjusted earnings per share outlook of $11.15–$11.45 and on the continued recovery of DSA, while the wide target range remains evidence of differing analyst estimates regarding the recovery trajectory.
Figures in the text are as of 2026-08-29; the live price is shown at the top of the page.
DSA bookings increased to $701 million, the backlog rose to $1.97 billion, and the book-to-bill ratio reached 1.19x in Q2 FY2026. Global biopharmaceutical companies and small and mid-sized biotechnology companies participated in the improvement, with a partial shift toward IND-enabling studies and continued strength in studies involving non-human primates. This was reflected in DSA's return to organic growth of 0.2% and the company's return to total organic growth of 0.1% for the first time since Q3 FY2023.
The company expects organic revenue to range from flat to up 1%, versus a reported revenue decline of between 2.5% and 3.5% because of the divestitures. The adjusted earnings per share range is $11.15–$11.45, representing annual growth of between 8% and 11%. It also expects operating margin expansion of between 120 and 150 basis points and free cash flow of between $400 and $420 million.
In June 2026, the company announced a collaboration with Eli Lilly's TuneLab platform to provide the nonclinical testing needed to build and improve a drug discovery model using artificial intelligence and machine learning. Management believes increased productivity in molecule design could raise the number of programs that subsequently require validation and safety assessment, but it did not specify when the financial impact could become material. Internally, Charles River uses an AI-enabled digital pathology ecosystem that aims to reduce standard timelines by at least one week and draws on more than 140 trained specialists.
Automated analysis for informational purposes only — not investment advice.
Some regulated safety studies for complex biologic therapies require non-human primates, and the company cited strong demand for these studies in Q2 FY2026. Having suppliers in Cambodia and Mauritius gives Charles River greater control over quality, shipping, quarantine, timing, and available capacity compared with relying entirely on third parties. The company expects a limited impact from the lower cost of these models in Q3, followed by a larger contribution to the DSA margin in Q4 FY2026.
RMS revenue was approximately $209 million and declined organically by 1.4% in Q2 FY2026. The weakness came primarily from lower volumes of small research models in North America and from research model services, including GEMS, while strong demand in China partially offset the decline. The company expects a low- to mid-single-digit organic decline for the segment during the year, with stable NIH budgets, slow grants, and weak formation of new biotechnology companies continuing to affect CRADL activity.
EDGAR filings recorded a net loss of $1.5 million in Q2 FY2026, but non-GAAP earnings per share were $3.02 and the adjusted operating margin rose to 20.5%. Free cash flow was $149 million, down $21 million year over year because of working capital timing, while capital expenditures were $31 million, or 3.1% of revenue. The company ended the quarter with net leverage of 2.5x after repurchasing $100 million of shares during the quarter and $300 million since the beginning of FY2026.
