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CRL vs IQV
Which Stock Would AI Choose? Charles River Laboratories (CRL) vs. IQVIA (IQV) Stock Comparison
Key Takeaways
- IQV demonstrates stronger year-to-date performance at approximately 30%, outpacing CRL's 17% gain amid recent market activity.
- IQV holds a significantly larger market capitalization of $26.5 billion compared to CRL's $8.2 billion, reflecting greater scale in the life sciences services sector.
- Both stocks await first-quarter earnings reports in early May, with IQV projecting robust 2026 revenue growth of 5-6% while CRL navigates divestiture impacts.
- IQV's forward P/E ratio of 12.4 appears more attractive than CRL's 14.9, alongside positive AI-driven initiatives boosting sentiment.
- Analyst price targets suggest upside potential: around 20% for CRL and over 45% for IQV, highlighting relative positioning.
Introduction
Charles River Laboratories (CRL) and IQVIA Holdings (IQV) are prominent players in the contract research organization (CRO) space, providing essential services to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. This stock comparison evaluates their recent performance, business models, and market dynamics in the evolving life sciences sector. Traders seeking exposure to healthcare innovation and investors monitoring CRO trends will find insights into relative strengths, growth trajectories, and sentiment shifts valuable for informed decision-making in today's volatile market environment.
CRL Overview and Recent Performance
Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (CRL) specializes in drug discovery, non-clinical development, and safety testing, operating through segments like Research Models and Services, Discovery and Safety Assessment, and Manufacturing Solutions. In recent weeks, the stock has traded around $166, reflecting a year-to-date gain of about 17% but remaining well below its 52-week high of $229. Sentiment has been tempered by divestiture announcements and a cautious 2026 outlook following Q4 2025 results, with expected Q1 EPS of $1.96 (down 16% year-over-year). New service launches, such as rat in vitro fertility testing, signal innovation, yet operational challenges like negative revenue growth in recent quarters have pressured shares. Higher beta (1.45) indicates elevated volatility relative to the market.
IQV Overview and Recent Performance
IQVIA Holdings Inc. (IQV) delivers clinical research, analytics, technology solutions, and contract sales across Technology & Analytics, Research & Development, and Contract Sales segments. Shares have hovered near $158 lately, with a solid year-to-date rise of 30% despite distance from the 52-week peak of $247. Recent market activity features optimism from Q4 2025 revenue beats ($4.36 billion) and 2026 guidance for $17.2-17.4 billion in revenue, bolstered by AI advancements like IQVIA.ai with NVIDIA. A shelf registration for potential share issuance introduced some caution, but lower beta (1.18) and positive analyst views support stability. Upcoming Q1 results on May 5 are anticipated to reflect continued execution.
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Head-to-Head Comparison
Both CRL and IQV serve the life sciences sector but differ in focus: CRL emphasizes preclinical testing and research models, while IQV offers end-to-end solutions with strong data analytics and AI integration. Growth drivers contrast, with IQV benefiting from durable demand and tech innovations versus CRL's service expansions amid divestitures. Recent momentum favors IQV's superior YTD returns and revenue outlook, though both face sector headwinds like biopharma funding constraints. Risk profiles show CRL with higher volatility (beta 1.45) and trailing losses, while IQV exhibits better profitability. Market sentiment leans toward IQV's scale and catalysts in relative performance analyses.
Tickeron AI Verdict
Tickeron's AI currently favors IQV over CRL, driven by stronger trend consistency, superior year-to-date gains, optimistic 2026 guidance, and AI-enhanced growth prospects. IQV's larger scale and lower forward valuation position it probabilistically better for stability amid sector volatility, though both merit monitoring post-earnings.
Disclaimer
The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full Disclaimers and Limitations.
To compare these two companies we present long-term analysis, their fundamental ratings and make comparative short-term technical analysis which are presented below. The conclusion is CRL is a Hold and IQV is a Hold.
Long-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a long-term outlook for a ticker by using Fundamental Analysis (FA) ratings. The rating of 1 to 100, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, is divided into thirds. The first third (a green rating of 1-33) indicates that the ticker is undervalued; the second third (a grey number between 34 and 66) means that the ticker is valued fairly; and the last third (red number of 67 to 100) reflects that the ticker is undervalued. We use an FA Score to show how many ratings show the ticker to be undervalued (green) or overvalued (red).
CRL’s FA Score shows that 1 FA rating(s) are green whileIQV’s FA Score has 0 green FA rating(s).
- CRL’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
- IQV’s FA Score: 0 green, 5 red.
Short-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a short-term outlook for a ticker by using Technical Analysis (TA) indicators. We use Odds of Success as the percentage of outcomes which confirm successful trade signals in the past.
If the Odds of Success (the likelihood of the continuation of a trend) for each indicator are greater than 50%, then the generated signal is confirmed. A green percentage from 90% to 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bullish trend. A red percentage from 90% - 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bearish trend. All grey percentages are below 50% and are considered not to confirm the trend signal.
CRL’s TA Score shows that 7 TA indicator(s) are bullish while IQV’s TA Score has 5 bullish TA indicator(s).
- CRL’s TA Score: 7 bullish, 3 bearish.
- IQV’s TA Score: 5 bullish, 4 bearish.
Price Growth
CRL (@Medical Specialties) experienced а -2.12% price change this week, while IQV (@Medical Specialties) price change was -6.31% for the same time period.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Medical Specialties industry was -1.17%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was +8.92%, and the average quarterly price growth was -2.29%.
Reported Earning Dates
CRL is expected to report earnings on Aug 12, 2026.
IQV is expected to report earnings on Jul 28, 2026.
Industries' Descriptions
@Medical Specialties (-1.17% weekly)Medical specialties are companies that make equipment used by the health care industry. Equipment manufactured and distributed by these companies include dialysis machines, blood analysis equipment, surgical equipment, dental instruments, and diagnostic tools, among other items. Large companies typically aim to produce and distribute high-quality products across a broad market spectrum. Smaller firms are more likely to specialize in a particular market segment. Due to the industry’s close association with medical treatments, they typically have low sensitivity to macroeconomic fluctuations. Within this industry, Abbott Laboratories, Medtronic Plc and Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. are some of the companies with multi-billion market capitalizations in the U.S. stock markets.
| CRL | IQV | CRL / IQV | |
| Capitalization | 8.78B | 28.5B | 31% |
| EBITDA | 291M | 3.52B | 8% |
| Gain YTD | -8.592 | -24.285 | 35% |
| P/E Ratio | 577.05 | 21.20 | 2,722% |
| Revenue | 4.03B | 16.6B | 24% |
| Total Cash | 192M | 2.1B | 9% |
| Total Debt | 3.06B | 16.1B | 19% |
CRL | IQV | ||
|---|---|---|---|
OUTLOOK RATING 1..100 | 25 | 17 | |
VALUATION overvalued / fair valued / undervalued 1..100 | 89 Overvalued | 58 Fair valued | |
PROFIT vs RISK RATING 1..100 | 100 | 100 | |
SMR RATING 1..100 | 100 | 100 | |
PRICE GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 43 | 52 | |
P/E GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 1 | 51 | |
SEASONALITY SCORE 1..100 | n/a | 90 |
Tickeron ratings are formulated such that a rating of 1 designates the most successful stocks in a given industry, while a rating of 100 points to the least successful stocks for that industry.
IQV's Valuation (58) in the Servicestothe Health Industry industry is in the same range as CRL (89) in the Miscellaneous Commercial Services industry. This means that IQV’s stock grew similarly to CRL’s over the last 12 months.
IQV's Profit vs Risk Rating (100) in the Servicestothe Health Industry industry is in the same range as CRL (100) in the Miscellaneous Commercial Services industry. This means that IQV’s stock grew similarly to CRL’s over the last 12 months.
IQV's SMR Rating (100) in the Servicestothe Health Industry industry is in the same range as CRL (100) in the Miscellaneous Commercial Services industry. This means that IQV’s stock grew similarly to CRL’s over the last 12 months.
CRL's Price Growth Rating (43) in the Miscellaneous Commercial Services industry is in the same range as IQV (52) in the Servicestothe Health Industry industry. This means that CRL’s stock grew similarly to IQV’s over the last 12 months.
CRL's P/E Growth Rating (1) in the Miscellaneous Commercial Services industry is somewhat better than the same rating for IQV (51) in the Servicestothe Health Industry industry. This means that CRL’s stock grew somewhat faster than IQV’s over the last 12 months.
| CRL | IQV | |
|---|---|---|
| RSI ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 68% | N/A |
| Stochastic ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 82% | 2 days ago 60% |
| Momentum ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 73% | 2 days ago 70% |
| MACD ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 67% | 2 days ago 60% |
| TrendWeek ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 75% | 2 days ago 64% |
| TrendMonth ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 65% | 2 days ago 63% |
| Advances ODDS (%) | 10 days ago 69% | 10 days ago 58% |
| Declines ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 71% | 8 days ago 65% |
| BollingerBands ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 70% | 2 days ago 53% |
| Aroon ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 66% | 2 days ago 46% |
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IQV and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, IQV has been closely correlated with CRL. These tickers have moved in lockstep 75% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if IQV jumps, then CRL could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To IQV | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IQV | 100% | -4.74% | ||
| CRL - IQV | 75% Closely correlated | -1.33% | ||
| TMO - IQV | 71% Closely correlated | -2.31% | ||
| MEDP - IQV | 69% Closely correlated | -0.84% | ||
| RVTY - IQV | 65% Loosely correlated | -3.36% | ||
| A - IQV | 63% Loosely correlated | -3.12% | ||
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