Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. Acquires 596 Shares of IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX)

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX) by 58.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,621 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.’s holdings in IDEXX Laboratories were worth $900,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 4.1% in the third quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 7,650 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,345,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in IDEXX Laboratories by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 43,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,572,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio lifted its holdings in IDEXX Laboratories by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 19,558 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,552,000 after buying an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its position in IDEXX Laboratories by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 19,298 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,438,000 after buying an additional 1,149 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 16.3% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 92,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,653,000 after buying an additional 13,062 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.84% of the company’s stock.

IDEXX Laboratories Stock Up 1.4 %

IDEXX Laboratories stock opened at $483.68 on Wednesday. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. has a twelve month low of $372.50 and a twelve month high of $583.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company has a 50 day moving average of $519.60 and a 200-day moving average of $514.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.95 billion, a PE ratio of 46.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 1.27.

IDEXX Laboratories (NASDAQ:IDXX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The company reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $901.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $891.88 million. IDEXX Laboratories had a return on equity of 63.66% and a net margin of 23.26%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.05 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. will post 11.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on IDXX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on IDEXX Laboratories from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of IDEXX Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of IDEXX Laboratories from $500.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. StockNews.com cut shares of IDEXX Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on IDEXX Laboratories from $655.00 to $570.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, IDEXX Laboratories currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $580.88.

Insider Activity at IDEXX Laboratories

In other news, SVP George Fennell sold 8,198 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $573.87, for a total transaction of $4,704,586.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,851,815.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.11% of the stock is owned by insiders.

IDEXX Laboratories Company Profile

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc develops, manufactures, and distributes products primarily for the companion animal veterinary, livestock and poultry, dairy, and water testing markets in Africa, the Asia Pacific, Canada, Europe, Latin America, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Companion Animal Group; Water Quality Products; and Livestock, Poultry and Dairy.