IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, thirteen have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $266.25.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on IQV. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on IQVIA in a research report on Wednesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 target price for the company. Argus upgraded shares of IQVIA to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of IQVIA in a research report on Thursday, June 6th. They set a “buy” rating and a $270.00 price target for the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of IQVIA from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of IQVIA from $235.00 to $251.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Eric Sherbet sold 1,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.33, for a total value of $320,229.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 19,536 shares in the company, valued at $4,812,302.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On IQVIA

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brown Financial Advisors bought a new stake in shares of IQVIA in the second quarter valued at about $642,000. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in IQVIA by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 87,145 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $18,426,000 after acquiring an additional 6,019 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in IQVIA by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 71,602 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $15,140,000 after acquiring an additional 2,272 shares during the last quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in shares of IQVIA during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $254,000. Finally, SPC Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of IQVIA in the second quarter worth $217,000. 89.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

IQVIA Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:IQV opened at $248.77 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $233.58 and a 200-day moving average of $234.51. The firm has a market cap of $45.35 billion, a PE ratio of 33.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. IQVIA has a twelve month low of $167.42 and a twelve month high of $261.73.

IQVIA (NYSE:IQV) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The medical research company reported $2.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.79 billion. IQVIA had a net margin of 9.39% and a return on equity of 28.59%. IQVIA’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.22 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that IQVIA will post 10.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About IQVIA

IQVIA Holdings Inc engages in the provision of advanced analytics, technology solutions, and clinical research services to the life sciences industry in the Americas, Europe, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. It operates through three segments: Technology & Analytics Solutions, Research & Development Solutions, and Contract Sales & Medical Solutions.