Icon Plc $ICLR Shares Purchased by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in shares of Icon Plc (NASDAQ:ICLR) by 463.8% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 71,817 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 59,078 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Icon were worth $12,475,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Icon by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 4,932 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $899,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Icon by 11.5% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 541 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Icon by 21.4% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 391 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in shares of Icon by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 23,942 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,363,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, Westpac Banking Corp boosted its stake in shares of Icon by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 1,146 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. 95.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Icon News

Here are the key news stories impacting Icon this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Icon’s latest quarterly results modestly exceeded expectations: adjusted EPS was $2.56 versus the $2.55 consensus, while revenue of $2.06 billion topped estimates of $2.00 billion. Revenue also rose 2.3% year over year, indicating continued demand for its outsourced clinical-research services.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains a potential catalyst. BMO Capital Markets raised its price target to $187, Mizuho lifted its target to $190, and William Blair upgraded the stock to “strong buy.” The broader analyst consensus is “Hold,” with an average target of $170.40. Analyst coverage article
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional ownership is high at 95.61%, and several investment firms recently initiated or increased positions in ICLR. The stock is also trading above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, reflecting favorable recent momentum.
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Barry Balfe, CFO Nigel Clerkin and several directors sold shares totaling roughly $1.6 million at prices near $164.07–$164.29. The filings state that the sales were made to cover tax-withholding obligations connected with vested equity awards, and the insiders retained shares afterward, reducing the negative signal. Icon insider sales article
• Negative Sentiment: Although revenue beat estimates, quarterly EPS fell from $3.26 in the prior-year period, highlighting earnings pressure. ICLR also trades at a relatively demanding valuation, with a price-to-earnings ratio near 39 and a PEG ratio above 6, leaving the stock vulnerable if growth or guidance weakens.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ICLR shares. Robert W. Baird set a $194.00 target price on shares of Icon in a research note on Friday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Icon from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. William Blair raised Icon to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded Icon from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $126.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Icon from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating 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, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $170.40.

Insider Activity

In other Icon news, CFO Nigel Bernard John Clerkin sold 2,267 shares of Icon stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.29, for a total transaction of $372,445.43. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 5,881 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $966,189.49. The trade was a 27.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Anne Clem Whitaker sold 841 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.29, for a total value of $138,167.89. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 891 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $146,382.39. This represents a 48.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,531 shares of company stock valued at $1,565,764. Insiders own 44.00% of the company’s stock.

Icon Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:ICLR opened at $167.48 on Friday. Icon Plc has a fifty-two week low of $66.57 and a fifty-two week high of $203.91. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $162.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $134.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market cap of $12.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.93 and a beta of 1.21.

Icon (NASDAQ:ICLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The medical research company reported $2.56 EPS 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 company had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Icon Plc will post 9.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Icon

Icon plc (NASDAQ: ICLR) is a global provider of outsourced drug development and clinical research services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries. The company partners with clients at all stages of the product life cycle, offering expertise in protocol design, trial execution and regulatory compliance across a broad range of therapeutic areas.

Icon’s service portfolio encompasses clinical trial management, data management and biostatistics, medical imaging, pharmacovigilance and safety monitoring, laboratory sciences and specialized analytical solutions.