June 13 (Bloomberg) -- A group of animal rights activists gathered outside the Euronext offices in central Paris today, protesting against the trading of shares in Huntingdon Life Sciences Group Plc.

A unit of East Millstone, New Jersey-based Life Sciences Research Inc., Huntingdon is one of the world's largest contract research companies and carries out experimental treatments on rats, monkeys and dogs for pharmaceutical companies. Huntingdon Life Sciences employees, customers and investors have been targeted several times by activists.

Shares of the company have been trading since December last year on the New York Stock Exchange, which bought Euronext, Europe's second-largest bourse by market value, on April 4. The protesters in Paris were part of an international animal rights group called Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty.

``Our strategy is to demonstrate against Huntingdon's customers,'' said Chris, one of the demonstrators in Paris, who declined to give his last name.

In May 2006, U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair wrote in the Sunday Telegraph newspaper that ``this tiny extremist fringe is out of touch with public opinion.'' He said he would add his name to an online petition backing animal testing when necessary.

In 2002, Huntingdon moved its headquarters to the U.S. from Britain after its employees, shareholders and bankers were harassed.

To contact the reporters on this story: Nicholas Bernstein in Paris at nberstein@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: June 13, 2007 05:19 EDT