Medpace (NASDAQ:MEDP) Cut to “Hold” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research downgraded shares of Medpace (NASDAQ:MEDP) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Medpace in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $600.00 price target for the company. Mizuho set a $660.00 target price on shares of Medpace in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Medpace in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Truist Financial set a $555.00 price objective on shares of Medpace in a report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Medpace from $485.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $491.27.

Medpace Trading Up 1.3%

NASDAQ:MEDP opened at $616.45 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.36 billion, a PE ratio of 43.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.43. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $581.78 and its 200 day moving average is $507.20. Medpace has a 12 month low of $250.05 and a 12 month high of $626.26.

Medpace (NASDAQ:MEDP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The company reported $3.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.50 by $0.36. Medpace had a return on equity of 91.88% and a net margin of 18.36%.The business had revenue of $659.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $640.49 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.01 earnings per share. Medpace’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. Medpace has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.600-14.860 EPS. Research analysts predict that Medpace will post 12.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Medpace

In other Medpace news, CEO August J. Troendle sold 59,025 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.78, for a total value of $35,874,214.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 774,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $470,787,603.56. This trade represents a 7.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Susan E. Burwig sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.15, for a total transaction of $12,183,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 27,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,751,625. The trade was a 42.11% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 387,925 shares of company stock valued at $233,386,647. Corporate insiders own 20.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Medpace

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Medpace by 65.1% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,025,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $518,170,000 after purchasing an additional 404,226 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Medpace in the second quarter worth $66,597,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in Medpace by 205.8% during the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 314,150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $161,523,000 after buying an additional 211,411 shares during the period. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Medpace during the second quarter valued at about $40,569,000. Finally, Mawer Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Medpace by 17.4% in the second quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 817,432 shares of the company’s stock worth $256,559,000 after buying an additional 121,213 shares during the period. 77.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Medpace

Medpace Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: MEDP) is a global contract research organization (CRO) that provides comprehensive clinical development services to biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device companies. The company supports clinical trials across all phases (I–IV), offering end-to-end solutions designed to streamline the development process and accelerate the delivery of new therapies to market.

Medpace’s core service offerings include clinical pharmacology, regulatory affairs consulting, project management, central laboratory services, imaging, data management and biostatistics, pharmacovigilance and medical writing.