Charles River raises 2026 guidance after third-quarter organic growth beats forecast

Charles River Laboratories International reported results for the third quarter ended September 26, 2026 on November 4, 2026. Total revenue came in at $982.7 million, with GAAP earnings per share of $6.86 and non-GAAP earnings per share of $3.09.¹ Organic revenue growth was 4.7%, which the company said outperformed its prior outlook and marked a second straight quarter of organic growth.¹

The company said the guidance increase was primarily driven by third-quarter outperformance, led by better-than-expected performance in the Discovery and Safety Assessment (DSA) segment and a lower tax rate.¹ The updated 2026 revenue and earnings per share guidance follows a prior update issued on August 5, 2026.¹ Current full-year guidance calls for organic revenue growth of at least 1.5%, versus the prior range of 0.0% to 1.0%, non-GAAP EPS of $11.35 to $11.55 versus a prior $11.15 to $11.45, and GAAP EPS of $8.15 to $8.35 versus a prior $3.05 to $3.35.¹

On the scientific and operational side, Charles River recently announced an industry collaboration with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to validate preclinical screening tools that quantify and rank the abuse potential of new drugs.¹ The company also introduced a new rapid cell banking program meant to accelerate product release timelines in its Biologics Testing Solutions business, and said its Virtual Control Group database and methodology will be used in an upcoming Good Laboratory Practice-compliant safety assessment study for Ipsen.¹

Charles River also said it advanced modernization efforts through its Endosafe Cartridge Technology Automated Manufacturing Suite and partnered with Autolomous to launch Apollo Orchestrate, a new capability meant to digitize laboratory workflows within its Apollo platform.¹

By segment, organic revenue growth was driven by gains in both the Manufacturing Solutions and Discovery and Safety Assessment segments.¹