CRL
Charles River Laboratories International, Inc.
CRL offers stronger fundamentals, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
UNH
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated
UNH has the edge over CRL overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger modeled upside.
CRL Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Stable | |
| Weak |
CRL's profitability is currently healthy, and its revenue and cash flow are stable, but its balance sheet is weak.
UNH Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy |
UNH's cash flow and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its revenue and profitability are stable.
CRL PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 22x | $21.43 | -94% |
| Fair | 29x | $27.64 | -92% |
| Expensive | 46x | $44.08 | -87% |
| Current | 355x | $341 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
CRL's PE is in its expensive range at 355x.
UNH PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 18x | $405 | — |
| Cheap | 19x | $325 | -20% |
| Fair | 23x | $410 | +1.2% |
| Current | 23x | $405 | — |
| Expensive | 30x | $526 | +30% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
UNH has the edge over CRL in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
CRL Forward outlook
There aren't enough analyst estimates for CRL to show an outlook.
UNH Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Stable | |
| Improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Low |
Analysts expect UNH's earnings to grow and its profitability to improve, with its revenue holding steady. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
CRL Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $0.96 | +$2.47 |
| Q2 2026 | -$4.80 | -$3.52 |
| Q1 2026 | -$3.71 | -$3.11 |
| Q4 2025 | -$2.91 | -1555% |
| Q3 2025 | -$1.51 | -119% |
| Q2 2025 | -$1.28 | -115% |
| Q1 2025 | -$0.60 | -107% |
| Q4 2024 | $0.20 | -98% |
CRL has returned to profit: it earned $0.96 per share over the past year, after losing money the year before.
UNH Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $22.65 | +29% |
| Q3 2026 | $17.55 | -8.5% |
| Q2 2026 | $15.58 | -33% |
| Q1 2026 | $13.28 | -44% |
| Q4 2025 | $13.23 | -15% |
| Q3 2025 | $19.17 | +25% |
| Q2 2025 | $23.09 | +53% |
| Q1 2025 | $23.89 | +46% |
| Q4 2024 | $15.51 | -35% |
UNH has the edge over CRL on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
CRL Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $982.7M | -2.2% |
| Q2 2026 | $1B | -2.7% |
| Q1 2026 | $995.8M | +1.2% |
| Q4 2025 | $994.2M | -0.8% |
| Q3 2025 | $1B | -0.5% |
| Q2 2025 | $1B | +0.6% |
| Q1 2025 | $984.2M | -2.7% |
| Q4 2024 | $1B | -1.1% |
CRL's revenue grew through 2022 and has held roughly level since: $983M last quarter, down 2.2% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 21% | +7.3 points |
| Q2 2026 | 12% | +2.2 points |
| Q1 2026 | 12% | +4.4 points |
| Q4 2025 | -29% | -12 points |
| Q3 2025 | 13% | +1.7 points |
| Q2 2025 | 9.7% | -5.1 points |
| Q1 2025 | 7.6% | -4.9 points |
| Q4 2024 | -17% | -30 points |
CRL has the edge over UNH on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
UNH Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $112.7B | -0.4% |
| Q2 2026 | $112B | +0.4% |
| Q1 2026 | $111.7B | +2% |
| Q4 2025 | $113.2B | +12% |
| Q3 2025 | $113.2B | +12% |
| Q2 2025 | $111.6B | +13% |
| Q1 2025 | $109.6B | +9.8% |
| Q4 2024 | $100.8B | +6.8% |
UNH has the edge over CRL on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 5.8% | +2 points |
| Q2 2026 | 7.1% | +2.5 points |
| Q1 2026 | 8.1% | -0.3 points |
| Q4 2025 | 0.3% | -7.4 points |
| Q3 2025 | 3.8% | -4.8 points |
| Q2 2025 | 4.6% | -3.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 8.3% | +0.4 points |
| Q4 2024 | 7.7% | -0.4 points |
UNH's operating margin was 5.8% last quarter, up 2 points from the same quarter a year ago.
CRL Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $207.3M | +16% |
| Q2 2026 | $148.6M | -12% |
| Q1 2026 | -$14.8M | -113% |
| Q4 2025 | $58.6M | -30% |
| Q3 2025 | $178.2M | -16% |
| Q2 2025 | $169.3M | +9.9% |
| Q1 2025 | $112.4M | +121% |
| Q4 2024 | $83.7M | -41% |
CRL still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2024 peak: $400M over the past year.
UNH Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $4.3B | -16% |
| Q2 2026 | $10.3B | +63% |
| Q1 2026 | $8.1B | +79% |
| Q4 2025 | $160M | -89% |
| Q3 2025 | $5.1B | -61% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.3B | +6.9% |
| Q1 2025 | $4.6B | +1037% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.5B | +$7.6B |
UNH has the edge over CRL on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
CRL Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +1.2% | +563K shares |
| 1 year | -1.7% | -842K shares |
| 3 years | -5.9% | -3M shares |
| 5 years | -5.8% | -3M shares |
| Available history | -2.2% | -1.1M shares |
CRL has the edge over UNH on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $224,000 |
| Q2 2026 | $115.6M |
| Q1 2026 | $208.3M |
| Q4 2025 | $96,000 |
| Q3 2025 | $93,000 |
| Q2 2025 | $7.4M |
| Q1 2025 | $353.1M |
| Q4 2024 | $124,000 |
CRL spent $324M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 10% from the year before.
UNH Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.4% | -4M shares |
| 1 year | -0.7% | -6M shares |
| 3 years | -3.6% | -34M shares |
| 5 years | -5.5% | -53M shares |
| Available history | -6.6% | -64M shares |
UNH has 902M diluted shares, down 0.7% from a year ago, with $5B in buybacks over the past year.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $3.4B |
| Q2 2026 | $1.6B |
| Q1 2026 | — |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | $2.5B |
| Q1 2025 | $3B |
| Q4 2024 | $5B |
UNH spent $5B buying back its own shares over the past year, down 52% from the year before.
CRL Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 5.1x | High |
| Q2 2026 | 6.3x | High |
| Q1 2026 | 5.9x | High |
| Q4 2025 | 4.5x | High |
| Q3 2025 | 3.5x | Elevated |
| Q2 2025 | 3.9x | Elevated |
| Q1 2025 | 4.0x | Elevated |
| Q4 2024 | 3.5x | Elevated |
CRL's net debt is about 5.1 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), up from 3.5 years a year ago.
UNH Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q2 2026 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q1 2026 | 2.2x | Moderate |
| Q4 2025 | 2.3x | Moderate |
| Q3 2025 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q2 2025 | 1.5x | Healthy |
| Q1 2025 | 1.3x | Healthy |
| Q4 2024 | 1.4x | Healthy |
UNH has the edge over CRL on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
CRL Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 71.9 | Overbought |
| Stochastic | 75.1 | Neutral |
CRL's weekly RSI is 72 (overbought) and its Stochastic is 75 (neutral).
UNH Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 56.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 60.0 | Neutral |
UNH's weekly RSI is 56 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 60 (neutral).
CRL PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | CRL | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 355x | 26x | 1,273% above |
| PE % | 96 | 29 | 67 pts above |
CRL is trading at 355x earnings, a 1273% premium to the Healthcare sector's median of 26x.
UNH PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | UNH | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 23x | 26x | 11% below |
| PE % | 47 | 29 | 18 pts above |
UNH has the edge over CRL on valuation relative to its sector.
CRL Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $321.0 | 6.2% above |
| 20 week MA | $284.7 | 20% above |
| 50 week MA | $223.9 | 52% above |
| 100 week MA | $191.1 | 78% above |
| 200 week MA | $201.5 | 69% above |
CRL has the edge over UNH on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
UNH Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $394.2 | 2.8% above |
| 20 week MA | $400.5 | 1.2% above |
| 50 week MA | $361.2 | 12% above |
| 100 week MA | $376.0 | 7.8% above |
| 200 week MA | $446.6 | 9.3% below |
UNH has bounced recently, but its long-term trend is still down: it's above its 8-, 20-, 50- and 100-week averages, but 9.3% below its 200-week average.
CRL Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $151.9 | $251.7 | +66% |
| 2021 | $251.7 | $369.2 | +47% |
| 2022 | $369.2 | $218.5 | -41% |
| 2023 | $218.5 | $236.4 | +8.2% |
| 2024 | $236.4 | $186.2 | -21% |
| 2025 | $186.2 | $203.7 | +9.4% |
| 2026 YTD | $203.7 | $340.8 | +67% |
CRL has the edge over UNH on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
UNH Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $296.0 | $340.8 | +15% |
| 2021 | $340.8 | $495.4 | +45% |
| 2022 | $495.4 | $531.3 | +7.3% |
| 2023 | $531.3 | $526.5 | -0.9% |
| 2024 | $526.5 | $510.0 | -3.1% |
| 2025 | $510.0 | $331.8 | -35% |
| 2026 YTD | $331.8 | $405.1 | +22% |
UNH has finished three years in a row lower, and it's up 22% so far in 2026.