At a glance
Charles River Laboratories is worth $16.16B. Revenue fell 0.9% to $4.02B in fiscal 2025, at a loss; over 5 years it has grown 6.5% a year. It pays no dividend; it spent $583.4M buying back its shares over FY2021–FY2025. The stock returned +88.0% over the past year with dividends reinvested and −4.8% a year over five years, against +11.5% and +11.7% for the S&P 500. At its worst it fell 44.5% in the 2020 crash (S&P 500: 33.7%) and 49.6% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%), and was back at its earlier high 2 months and 49 months after the lows.
The business in plain English
Charles River Laboratories, based in Wilmington, Massachusetts, helps drug developers test potential medicines before they are tried in people. It calls itself a non-clinical drug development partner, meaning it handles the lab and animal research that comes before human clinical trials. Clients include major pharmaceutical and biotech companies; chemical, medical device and consumer product makers; hospitals; universities; and government agencies. Services made up 80.9% of the $4.0 billion in revenue for the fiscal year ended December 27, 2025, and products 19.1%.
Discovery and Safety Assessment (DSA) is the largest segment, at 59.8% of revenue. It handles early drug discovery research and the safety testing regulators require before new drugs, vaccines and industrial or agricultural chemicals can move forward. Research Models and Services (RMS), at 21.1%, is the original business, dating to 1947. It breeds and sells research animals, including more than 140 stocks and strains of purpose-bred rodents (animals raised specifically for research). Manufacturing Solutions, at 19.1%, sells products and services that support clients' manufacturing.
The U.S. supplied 53.3% of revenue, Europe 27.5%, Canada 12.5% and Asia Pacific 5.1%. Its annual report filed February 18, 2026 counted more than 120 sites in over 20 countries and said it expected to close or consolidate about 12 more within two years, mainly in DSA and RMS.
Price history
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CRL +88.0% over the year to Nov 2, 2026, total return with dividends reinvested.
How it makes money
By product or service
| Service | $3.25B | 80.9% |
| Product | $765.3M | 19.1% |
By business segment
| DSA | $2.40B | 59.8% |
| RMS | $846.1M | 21.1% |
| Manufacturing | $766.4M | 19.1% |
By geography
| U.S. | $2.14B | 53.3% |
| Europe | $1.10B | 27.5% |
| Canada | $501.0M | 12.5% |
| Asia Pacific | $205.0M | 5.1% |
| Other | $64.9M | 1.6% |
Latest results
- In Q2 FY2026 (ended Jun 27, 2026), revenue was $1.00B, down 2.7% from a year earlier, and net income was $-1.5M (-102.8%).
- For fiscal 2025, revenue was $4.02B (-0.9% year over year; +6.5% a year from FY2020 to FY2025) with a -3.6% net margin.
Financial health check
| Revenue growth a year (FY2020–FY2025) | +6.5% good |
|---|---|
| Operating margin | 0.6% weak |
| Free cash flow margin | 12.9% good |
| Return on equity (FY2025) | -4.6% weak |
| Return on assets (FY2025) | -2% weak |
| Net cash (cash minus debt) | $-2.43B weak |
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Net income | Free cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $2.92B | $364.3M | $380.0M |
| FY2021 | $3.54B | $391.0M | $532.0M |
| FY2022 | $3.98B | $486.2M | $294.9M |
| FY2023 | $4.13B | $474.6M | $365.4M |
| FY2024 | $4.05B | $22.2M | $501.6M |
| FY2025 | $4.02B | $-144.3M | $518.5M |
Valuation snapshot
| Market value | $16.16B |
|---|---|
| P/E ratio | — |
| Dividend yield | None |
Rank among 1514 US companies
Market value at each year end
Charles River Laboratories’s market value went from $3.61B at the end of 2016 to $16.16B on Nov 2, 2026, about 4.5 times as much; since the end of 2025 it is up 65%.
Show as a table
| Year end | Market value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 2, 2026 | $16.16B | +64.6% |
| 2025 | $9.82B | +4.0% |
| 2024 | $9.44B | -22.2% |
| 2023 | $12.13B | +9.4% |
| 2022 | $11.09B | -41.7% |
| 2021 | $19.01B | +53.0% |
| 2020 | $12.43B | +66.6% |
| 2019 | $7.46B | +37.1% |
| 2018 | $5.44B | +5.0% |
| 2017 | $5.18B | +43.8% |
| 2016 | $3.61B |
Price behavior
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CRL price data to Nov 2, 2026 | +69.7% | +88.0% | +24.7% | -4.8% | +17.1% |
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +69.7% |
| 2025 | +8.1% |
| 2024 | -21.9% |
| 2023 | +8.5% |
| 2022 | -42.2% |
| 2021 | +50.8% |
| 2020 | +63.6% |
| 2019 | +35.0% |
| 2018 | +3.4% |
| 2017 | +43.6% |
| 2016 | -5.2% |
| 2015 | +26.3% |
| 2014 | +20.0% |
| 2013 | +41.5% |
| 2012 | +37.1% |
| 2011 | -23.1% |
| 2010 | +5.5% |
| 2009 | +28.6% |
| 2008 | -60.2% |
| 2007 | +52.1% |
| 2006 | +2.1% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Lost 57% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 69.8%, back to its old high 73.8 months after the low |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Lost 43.6% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 44.5%, back to its old high 2.4 months after the low |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Lost 45.5% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 49.6%, back to its old high 49 months after the low |
Insider activity
Form 4 filings from 2025-10-29 to 2026-10-29 (25 read): 1 open-market purchases ($3K) and 21 sales ($52.1M), 10 of them under pre-arranged 10b5-1 trading plans.
| Date | Insider | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 29, 2026 | James C Foster Director | sell (plan) | $16.9M |
| Aug 25, 2026 | James C Foster Director | sell (plan) | $10.1M |
| Oct 22, 2026 | James C Foster Director | sell (plan) | $8.4M |
| Aug 10, 2026 | James C Foster Director | sell (plan) | $7.9M |
| Aug 11, 2026 | Birgit Girshick Chief Executive Officer, Director | sell (plan) | $1.8M |
Who owns it
Large shareholders (13G filings)
| FMR LLC | 10.2% | Aug 31, 2026 |
| Vanguard Capital Management | 7.38% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| BlackRock, Inc. | 6.9% | Mar 31, 2025 |
| Invesco Ltd. | 6.2% | Jun 30, 2026 |
| Wellington Management Group LLP | 3.6% | Dec 31, 2025 |
| NOMURA HOLDINGS INC | 1.6% | Sep 30, 2025 |
ETFs with the most weight in CRL
| AIEQ Amplify AI Powered Equity ETF | 2.08% |
| FTXH First Trust Nasdaq Pharmaceuticals ETF | 1.85% |
| BBH VanEck Biotech ETF | 1.44% |
| RSPH Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Health Care ETF | 1.33% |
| SMCO Hilton Small-MidCap Opportunity ETF | 0.95% |
| SPHB Invesco S&P 500® High Beta ETF | 0.94% |
| FXH First Trust Health Care AlphaDEX Fund | 0.41% |
| IQSM NYLI Candriam U.S. Mid Cap Equity ETF | 0.38% |
What could go wrong
- Limited supply of research primates. Some services rely on non-human primates (monkeys used in research) from a limited source of supply. Interruptions hurt the business, and the company is building stronger checks that imported animals are purpose-bred.
- Contamination in animal colonies. Contamination in its animal populations can destroy inventory, damage its reputation for contaminant-free production, reduce sales and add costs.
- New research methods could reduce demand. Much of the business relies on animal research models. Wider use of new research technologies could reduce demand, and negative attention from special interest groups can also hurt the business.
- Client spending can drop quickly. Clients can cancel, shrink or delay studies, and government research funding can be cut. Revenue fell 0.9% in fiscal 2025 and 2.7% year over year in the quarter ended June 27, 2026.
- Cost cuts and strategic review may disappoint. The company plans to close or consolidate about 12 more sites over two years. If savings fall short, or the board's strategic review disrupts the business without producing a deal, profits could suffer.
- Heavy debt and shareholder lawsuits. Total debt was $2.6 billion against $192 million of cash as of June 27, 2026. The annual report describes a securities class action filed May 19, 2023, and two shareholder suits against directors and officers.
Recent events
- Investor presentation or announcement
- Quarterly results released
- Executive or board change; Shareholder vote results
- Quarterly results released
- Investor presentation or announcement
- Executive or board change
- Quarterly results released
- Quarterly results released; Investor presentation or announcement
- Executive or board change
- Investor presentation or announcement
For income and retirement investors
Charles River does not pay a dividend, and its annual report says it does not expect to pay cash dividends for the foreseeable future. Returns come only from price gains, so an income investor would have to sell shares to raise cash. The company returns cash through buybacks (purchases of its own shares) instead: $583 million from fiscal 2021 to fiscal 2025, including $361 million in fiscal 2025. The share count fell 5.4% between October 22, 2021 and July 25, 2026.
The stock has fallen hard in past downturns. It dropped 69.8% during the 2008 financial crisis and took about 74 months, until January 2015, to recover. It lost 44.5% in the 2020 COVID crash but regained its prior peak about 2.4 months after the low. In the 2022 bear market it fell 49.6% and only climbed back above its January 3, 2022 level by October 28, 2026. Single stocks carry more risk than diversified funds.
Questions investors ask
How does Charles River Laboratories make money?
Mostly by selling research services to drug developers. Of $4.0 billion in revenue for the fiscal year ended December 27, 2025, Discovery and Safety Assessment, which runs early research and required safety testing, brought in 59.8%. Research Models and Services, which breeds and sells research animals such as purpose-bred rodents, added 21.1%, and Manufacturing Solutions 19.1%. Services made up 80.9% of revenue and products 19.1%. The U.S. accounted for 53.3%, Europe 27.5% and Canada 12.5%.
Does Charles River Laboratories pay a dividend?
No. Charles River pays no dividend, and its annual report filed February 18, 2026 says it does not expect to pay cash dividends for the foreseeable future, so shareholders benefit only if the stock price rises. The company returns cash through buybacks instead, spending about $583 million on repurchases from fiscal 2021 through fiscal 2025, including $361 million in fiscal 2025. Investors who need regular income would have to sell shares to get cash from this stock.
Is Charles River Laboratories profitable?
No, not in its latest full year. For the fiscal year ended December 27, 2025, it posted a net loss of $144 million, or $2.91 per share, after net income of $22 million in fiscal 2024 and $475 million in fiscal 2023. Operating profit was only 0.6% of revenue. Free cash flow, the cash left after running the business and investing in facilities, was still $518 million. The quarter ended June 27, 2026 brought a small net loss of about $1.5 million.
How has CRL stock performed over the long term?
It has swung widely. As of October 28, 2026, the shares had gained 99% over one year and 87.5% year to date, after falling 42.2% in 2022 and 21.9% in 2024. Over five years they lost an average of 3.1% a year, while the 10-year average was a 17.3% annual gain. The worst peak-to-trough drop across about 21 years of price history was 78.2%.
How much debt does Charles River Laboratories have?
About $2.6 billion as of June 27, 2026, against roughly $192 million of cash and investments, leaving net debt (debt minus cash) of about $2.4 billion. Shareholders' equity was about $2.8 billion and total assets $7.5 billion. The company's annual report lists its debt level as a risk to the business and its growth plans. For scale, free cash flow was $518 million in fiscal 2025, while buybacks that year cost $361 million.