IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $256.80.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on IQV shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on IQVIA from $226.00 to $251.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Barclays raised their price target on IQVIA from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Leerink Partnrs restated an “outperform” rating on shares of IQVIA in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Guggenheim downgraded IQVIA from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, SVB Leerink initiated coverage on IQVIA in a research note on Monday, February 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $290.00 price target for the company.

IQVIA Stock Down 2.8 %

NYSE:IQV opened at $234.08 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a market cap of $42.49 billion, a PE ratio of 32.11, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.50. IQVIA has a 52-week low of $167.42 and a 52-week high of $261.73. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $245.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $222.77.

IQVIA (NYSE:IQV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The medical research company reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.82 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.80 billion. IQVIA had a return on equity of 29.32% and a net margin of 9.06%. IQVIA’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.54 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that IQVIA will post 10.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Kevin C. Knightly sold 8,607 shares of IQVIA stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.17, for a total transaction of $2,153,213.19. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,313,642.67. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Kevin C. Knightly sold 8,607 shares of IQVIA stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.17, for a total transaction of $2,153,213.19. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,313,642.67. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Ari Bousbib sold 31,678 shares of IQVIA stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.53, for a total value of $7,936,289.34. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 796,752 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $199,610,278.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 41,285 shares of company stock valued at $10,331,003. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On IQVIA

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IQV. Norges Bank acquired a new position in IQVIA in the 4th quarter valued at $383,705,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main raised its holdings in IQVIA by 339.6% in the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 2,067,195 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $478,308,000 after acquiring an additional 1,597,003 shares in the last quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB acquired a new position in IQVIA in the 3rd quarter valued at $148,096,000. Morningstar Investment Services LLC raised its holdings in IQVIA by 96.9% in the 4th quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 1,231,916 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $286,704,000 after acquiring an additional 606,333 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in IQVIA by 42.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 1,995,269 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $461,675,000 after acquiring an additional 592,372 shares in the last quarter. 89.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.