Chairman of Charles River Laboratories International James Foster Buys 2.5% More Shares

Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE:CRL) shareholders (or potential shareholders) will be happy to see that the Chairman, James Foster, recently bought a whopping US$1.0m worth of stock, at a price of US$165. While that only increased their holding size by 2.5%, it is still a big swing by our standards.

See our latest analysis for Charles River Laboratories International

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Charles River Laboratories International

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Independent Director, Richard Wallman, sold US$1.6m worth of shares at a price of US$217 per share. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. The silver lining is that this sell-down took place above the latest price (US$163). So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 7.59k shares worth US$1.3m. On the other hand they divested 26.64k shares, for US$6.0m. All up, insiders sold more shares in Charles River Laboratories International than they bought, over the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of small cap stocks that are not only being bought by insiders but also have attractive valuations.

Insider Ownership Of Charles River Laboratories International

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Charles River Laboratories International insiders own about US$86m worth of shares. That equates to 1.0% of the company. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Do The Charles River Laboratories International Insider Transactions Indicate?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchases. However, the longer term transactions are not so encouraging. While recent transactions indicate confidence in Charles River Laboratories International, insiders don't own enough of the company to overcome our cautiousness about the longer term transactions. So they seem pretty well aligned, overall. While it's good to be aware of what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. You'd be interested to know, that we found 3 warning signs for Charles River Laboratories International and we suggest you have a look.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.