IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV) Shares Acquired by D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc.

D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV - Free Report) by 211.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 965,302 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 655,153 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. owned approximately 0.53% of IQVIA worth $189,691,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in IQV. Norges Bank bought a new position in IQVIA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $336,041,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in IQVIA during the 4th quarter worth $236,120,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of IQVIA by 396.0% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,134,737 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $222,987,000 after buying an additional 905,960 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in IQVIA by 53.4% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,590,260 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $509,012,000 after acquiring an additional 902,226 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in shares of IQVIA by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 4,282,024 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $841,461,000 after buying an additional 712,958 shares during the period. 89.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

IQVIA Price Performance

IQVIA stock traded down $4.13 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $152.00. The company had a trading volume of 1,240,276 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,484,304. IQVIA Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $135.97 and a 1-year high of $252.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $163.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $187.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.30 billion, a PE ratio of 20.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.34.

IQVIA (NYSE:IQV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The medical research company reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $0.07. IQVIA had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 28.81%. The firm had revenue of $3.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.54 EPS. The company's revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that IQVIA Holdings Inc. will post 10.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on IQV shares. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on IQVIA from $273.00 to $261.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on IQVIA from $195.00 to $161.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Mizuho cut their price objective on IQVIA from $242.00 to $210.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of IQVIA from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of IQVIA from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $231.71.

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.