Icon (NASDAQ:ICLR) Shares Climb 6.7% – Should You Buy?

Icon Plc (NASDAQ:ICLR)’s share price rose 6.7% on Wednesday. The stock traded as high as $185.56 and last traded at $185.78. Approximately 366,576 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 1,246,171 shares. The stock had previously closed at $174.19.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ICLR has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Icon from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $209.00 price objective (up from $207.00) on shares of Icon in a report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group initiated coverage on Icon in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $195.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Icon from $164.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded Icon from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $126.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, June 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $174.73.

Icon Stock Up 0.1%

The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market cap of $14.20 billion, a PE ratio of 43.53, a P/E/G ratio of 11.97 and a beta of 1.24. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $168.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $151.36.

Icon (NASDAQ:ICLR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The medical research company reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.01. Icon had a net margin of 3.99% and a return on equity of 8.02%. The firm had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.26 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Icon Plc will post 9.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director John Climax sold 5,005 shares of Icon stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $875,875.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,087 shares in the company, valued at approximately $365,225. This trade represents a 70.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Bernard Clerkin sold 2,267 shares of Icon stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.29, for a total value of $372,445.43. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 5,881 shares in the company, valued at $966,189.49. This represents a 27.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 22,796 shares of company stock valued at $3,887,139 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 44.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Icon

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Gibbs Wealth Management bought a new stake in Icon during the third quarter valued at about $235,000. Inspire Investing LLC raised its holdings in Icon by 8.4% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 18,625 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,166,000 after purchasing an additional 1,443 shares in the last quarter. Parthenon LLC raised its holdings in Icon by 1.2% in the third quarter. Parthenon LLC now owns 79,603 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $13,532,000 after purchasing an additional 950 shares in the last quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group raised its holdings in Icon by 17.8% in the third quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group now owns 2,814 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $455,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thor Investment Management Inc. OH ADV lifted its position in shares of Icon by 6.4% during the third quarter. Thor Investment Management Inc. OH ADV now owns 14,115 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,399,000 after buying an additional 843 shares during the last quarter. 95.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Icon Company Profile

ICON plc is a global contract research organization that provides outsourced development services to pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device companies. The company supports clinical research programs from early development through late-stage trials, regulatory submission and post-marketing activities.

Its services include clinical trial management, medical and regulatory consulting, biostatistics, data management, pharmacovigilance, laboratory services and real-world evidence solutions.