Charles River Laboratories Reports Q4 2025 Results and 2026 Guidance
Charles River Laboratories' stock fell 5.04% as it crossed below the 5-day SMA, reflecting investor concerns following the release of its fourth-quarter financial results.
The company reported a revenue decline of 0.8% year-over-year for Q4 2025, alongside a GAAP loss per share of $(5.62), which worsened from the previous year. This disappointing performance, particularly in the Discovery and Safety Assessment and Manufacturing Solutions segments, has raised concerns about future profitability and investor confidence. Additionally, the company's guidance for 2026 suggests flat revenue growth, which may further impact market sentiment.
These results indicate significant challenges for Charles River Laboratories, as the decline in profitability and cautious outlook could lead to a reevaluation of its strategic initiatives and investor trust.
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- Platform Launch: CNBC launched the CNBC Cures platform on January 8, aimed at giving a voice to the 30 million Americans living with rare diseases, connecting them with existing advocacy groups to drive attention and support from the medical community.
- Audience Engagement: The CNBC Cures newsletter has surpassed 20,000 subscribers, making it one of the fastest-growing newsletters on the network, indicating strong viewer interest and support for rare disease topics.
- Social Media Impact: Cures-related videos have garnered 1 million views across Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and LinkedIn, demonstrating significant outreach and enhancing public awareness of rare diseases.
- Successful Summit: The inaugural CNBC Cures Summit attracted notable figures like Warren Buffett and sold out shortly after registration opened, with over 8,000 views for the livestream, reflecting heightened societal attention and support for rare disease issues.
- Alternative Testing Methods: The FDA has issued draft guidance to assist drug developers in validating alternative methods to replace animal studies, emphasizing core validation principles for computer simulations and chemical reactivity studies, thereby modernizing drug development.
- Policy Commitment: HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. noted that this guidance reflects the FDA's commitment to replace animal testing with more scientifically rigorous and human-relevant methods, aiming to enhance the safety and efficacy of drug development.
- Technological Advances: FDA Commissioner Marty Makary stated that technological advancements allow drug development to move beyond animal testing, highlighting the poor track record of animal studies in predicting human safety and efficacy, thus facilitating the adoption of modern alternatives.
- Industry Impact: This guidance affects contract research organizations like Charles River Laboratories (CRL) and Inotiv (NOTV), potentially prompting these companies to adjust their preclinical testing strategies to comply with the FDA's new requirements, which could influence their market competitiveness.
Stock Market Decline: Stocks experienced another decline, primarily driven by concerns over energy prices.
Impact of Iran Conflict: The ongoing war in Iran is causing oil prices to rise, which raises concerns about potential negative effects on the U.S. economy.
- Stock Market Performance: The S&P 500 remained just below the 7000 mark throughout February, indicating a period of stagnation in the stock market.
- Economic Concerns: Ongoing tariff issues and worries about the impact of artificial intelligence on the economy are contributing to the uncertainty in the stock market as March approaches.
- Divestiture Announcement: Charles River Laboratories has announced plans to divest its Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) and Cell Solutions businesses, which are projected to generate $143 million in annual revenue in 2025, indicating a strategic shift in focus.
- Asset Sale Details: The divestiture will include CDMO sites in Tennessee, Maryland, and the UK, along with a Cell Solutions site in California, aimed at optimizing resource allocation and enhancing operational efficiency.
- Revenue Impact Forecast: The planned divestitures are expected to reduce reported revenue by over $200 million in 2026, resulting in a more than 50-basis-point negative impact on organic revenue growth guidance, reflecting short-term financial challenges.
- Earnings Guidance Adjustment: Despite the divestiture impacts, Charles River raised its fiscal 2026 adjusted earnings guidance to $10.80-$11.30, slightly above the consensus of $10.88, demonstrating confidence in its future profitability.

- Price Adjustment: Mizuhō has reduced the target price for Charles River Laboratories from $215 to $175.
- Market Impact: This adjustment reflects changes in market conditions and expectations for the company's performance.










