Icon Plc (NASDAQ:ICLR) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Icon Plc (NASDAQ:ICLR) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $217.3333.

Several research analysts have weighed in on ICLR shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Icon in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price objective (down from $225.00) on shares of Icon in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Baird R W upgraded shares of Icon from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Icon from $222.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Icon from $187.00 to $234.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of Icon by 67.4% in the second quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 7,184,870 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,045,039,000 after acquiring an additional 2,893,946 shares in the last quarter. Harris Associates L P acquired a new position in shares of Icon in the second quarter valued at about $238,256,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Icon during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $158,639,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Icon by 587.9% during the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,151,328 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $167,461,000 after purchasing an additional 983,950 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Icon during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $94,814,000. 95.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Icon Price Performance

NASDAQ ICLR opened at $186.48 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Icon has a 12-month low of $125.10 and a 12-month high of $303.69. The company has a market capitalization of $15.06 billion, a PE ratio of 19.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.23. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $173.85 and its 200-day moving average is $156.97.

Icon (NASDAQ:ICLR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The medical research company reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.08. Icon had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 10.95%. The company had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.98 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.75 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Icon has set its FY 2025 guidance at 13.000-14.000 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Icon will post 13.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Icon Company Profile

ICON Public Limited Company, a clinical research organization, provides outsourced development and commercialization services in Ireland, rest of Europe, the United States, and internationally. The company specializes in the strategic development, management, and analysis of programs that support various stages of the clinical development process from compound selection to Phase I-IV clinical studies.