Brokerages Set Icon Plc (NASDAQ:ICLR) Price Target at $170.40

Shares of Icon Plc (NASDAQ:ICLR) have been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the seventeen research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $170.40.

A number of brokerages recently commented on ICLR. Piper Sandler cut Icon to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Leerink Partners set a $145.00 price target on Icon in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Robert W. Baird set a $194.00 price target on Icon in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada raised Icon from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $126.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Icon from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Icon

In other news, Director Ciaran Murray sold 2,677 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.29, for a total transaction of $439,804.33. Following the sale, the director directly owned 20,452 shares in the company, valued at $3,360,059.08. This trade represents a 11.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Nigel Bernard John 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 transaction of $372,445.43. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 5,881 shares in the company, valued at approximately $966,189.49. This trade represents a 27.82% decrease in their position. 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 9,531 shares of company stock valued at $1,565,764. 44.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Icon

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. EFG International AG bought a new position in shares of Icon in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new stake in Icon during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $54,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Icon by 21.4% in the 2nd 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. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Icon in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $71,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Icon by 207.5% in the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 658 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 444 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.61% of the company’s stock.

Icon Price Performance

NASDAQ ICLR opened at $169.72 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $166.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $133.80. Icon has a 52 week low of $66.57 and a 52 week high of $203.91. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $13.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.84, a PEG ratio of 6.99 and a beta of 1.21.

Icon (NASDAQ:ICLR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The medical research company reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2 billion. Icon had a net margin of 3.99% and a return on equity of 8.02%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.26 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Icon will post 9.58 earnings per share for the current 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.