Charles River Labs Says It Expects Sales To Fall, Sending Its Stock Tumbling

Core Insights - Charles River Laboratories shares fell over 12% after the company announced an expected decline in sales for the full fiscal year, shifting from previous growth expectations [2][4] - The company reported second-quarter revenue of $1.03 billion, meeting analyst expectations, while profits were slightly above estimates at $94.08 million, both showing a decline from the previous year [2][3] - The board approved a new $1 billion stock buyback plan, replacing a previous $1.3 billion plan that had approximately $129 million remaining [4] Sales and Earnings Outlook - CEO James Foster indicated that demand is expected to soften in the second half of 2024, leading to a revision in the company's full-year revenue guidance to a decline of 2.5% to 4.5%, compared to earlier expectations of 1% to 4% growth [3] - Earnings per share (EPS) projections were also lowered from $7.60 to $8.10 to a new range of $5.65 to $5.95 [3] Stock Performance - Following the announcement, Charles River shares dropped to $200.98, marking a 12.2% decline on the day and approximately a 15% loss since the beginning of the year [4]