Charles River Laboratories International's (CRL) mid-term sales growth has structurally slowed down, a view that is supported by recent results and outlook, peer read-across, pricing trends and updated market analysis, UBS Securities said in a note Friday.

The brokerage said it sees various pressures to the mid-term sales growth in the company's discovery and safety assessment segment, which comprises about 60% of its sales.

Among these pressures are budget pressures at big pharma and underappreciated pricing pressures, UBS said.

"We remain constructive on Charles River's positioning as a key enabler to biopharma, and its opportunity to execute on cost reductions," UBS said.

UBS downgraded Charles River to neutral from buy and cut its price target to $185 from $250.

Price: 165.17, Change: -0.63, Percent Change: -0.38