Charles River Laboratories Intl. Inc vs F5 Inc — how do they compare? Charles River Laboratories Intl. Inc trades at $231 (market cap $11.14B), while F5 Inc trades at $433.93 (market cap $24.33B). The key difference: F5 Inc is far larger — about 2.2× Charles River Laboratories Intl. Inc's market cap. Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| CRL | FFIV | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $11.14B | $24.33B |
Sector | Health | Technology |
52-Week High | $233.60 | $431.26 |
52-Week Low | $145.57 | $223.99 |
Enterprise Value | $14.00B | $23.15B |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
Charles River Laboratories (CRL) trades at $229.75, down 1.57% on the day, near its consensus price target of $229.80. The stock shows a bullish technical trend with strong moving average signals and support at $225. Fundamentally, CRL has beaten EPS estimates for three consecutive quarters but reported a net loss of $144.34 million in 2025, with negative profit margins. Recent news highlights collaborations in AI and NGS services, supporting growth prospects.
Outlook remains mixed: analyst consensus is strongly bullish with 72% buy ratings and a high target of $260, but profitability challenges and high P/E of 684.85 pose risks. Cash flow stability and strategic partnerships offer upside, while margin pressures and debt levels require monitoring for sustained recovery.
F5 Networks (FFIV) trades at $420.95, down 2.19% today, with a bullish technical signal from moving averages and strong fundamental performance. The company has beaten earnings expectations for three consecutive quarters, with Q1 2026 EPS of $3.90 exceeding the $3.46 estimate. Revenue growth accelerated to $3.09 billion in 2025, while net income margins expanded to 22.42%. Recent strategic moves include expanding AI security capabilities through the SurePath AI acquisition and new executive appointments.
FFIV presents a mixed outlook with strong operational execution offset by premium valuations. The stock trades above analyst consensus target of $397, though institutional sentiment remains positive with 40% buy ratings. Key risks include competitive pressures in cybersecurity and execution challenges in AI integration. Earnings growth and margin expansion remain the primary catalysts for further upside potential.
Trailing returns across standard periods
Charles River Laboratories was founded in 1947 and is a leading provider of drug discovery and development services. The company's research model & services segment is the leading provider of animal models for laboratory testing, which breeds and delivers animal research models with specific genetic characteristics for preclinical studies around the world. The discovery & safety assessment segment includes services required to take a drug through the early development process, including discovery services. The manufacturing support segment includes microbial solutions, which provides in vitro (non-animal) testing products, biologics testing services, and avian vaccine services.
Read more on CRL →F5 is a market leader in the application delivery controller market. The company sells products for networking traffic, security, and policy management. Its products ensure applications are safely routed in efficient manners within on-premises data centers and across cloud environments. More than half of its revenue is based on providing services, and its three customer verticals are enterprises, service providers, and government entities. The Seattle-based firm was incorporated in 1996 and generates sales globally.
Read more on FFIV →