Icon (NASDAQ:ICLR) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

Icon Plc (NASDAQ:ICLR)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $202.92, but opened at $179.07. Icon shares last traded at $189.2030, with a volume of 870,918 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on ICLR. Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Icon in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Leerink Partners reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Icon in a research report on Monday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Icon from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Bank of America downgraded shares of Icon from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $195.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of Icon from $183.00 to $172.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Icon currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $204.56.

Icon Stock Down 6.6%

The stock has a market capitalization of $15.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.49, a PEG ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 1.26. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $176.61 and its 200-day moving average is $172.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Icon

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of ICLR. Tributary Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Icon by 84.5% in the 3rd quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC now owns 11,752 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,057,000 after buying an additional 5,381 shares in the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its position in 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 worth $1,045,039,000 after acquiring an additional 2,893,946 shares in the last quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. raised its position in Icon by 31.0% in the second quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. now owns 50,212 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $7,303,000 after acquiring an additional 11,894 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Icon by 11.2% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 531,395 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $77,292,000 after acquiring an additional 53,458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its position in shares of Icon by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 3,006,141 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $526,075,000 after purchasing an additional 12,489 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.61% of the company’s stock.

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.