ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. Purchases New Stake in IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX)

Key Points

• ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. has acquired a new stake in IDEXX Laboratories, Inc., purchasing 3,641 shares valued at approximately $1.5 million in the first quarter of the year.
• Several other institutional investors, including Vanguard Group and Principal Financial Group, have increased their holdings in IDEXX, suggesting a strong interest in the company's stock.
• Research analysts have set new price targets for IDEXX shares, with JPMorgan Chase raising it to $675 and Morgan Stanley setting it at $722, reflecting positive sentiment towards the stock.

ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. bought a new position in shares of IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,641 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,529,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in IDEXX Laboratories by 59,810.7% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 918,431 shares of the company's stock worth $3,856,950,000 after acquiring an additional 916,898 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 58.3% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,126,002 shares of the company's stock valued at $472,865,000 after purchasing an additional 414,802 shares during the period. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new position in IDEXX Laboratories during the fourth quarter valued at $156,412,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in IDEXX Laboratories by 221.3% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 441,319 shares of the company's stock valued at $182,459,000 after buying an additional 303,966 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. purchased a new position in IDEXX Laboratories during the first quarter valued at $120,008,000. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

IDEXX Laboratories Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of IDEXX Laboratories stock traded down $5.95 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $652.11. The stock had a trading volume of 491,852 shares, compared to its average volume of 738,397. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $545.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $479.99. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. has a 12-month low of $356.14 and a 12-month high of $688.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market cap of $52.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 1.49.

IDEXX Laboratories (NASDAQ:IDXX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The company reported $3.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. IDEXX Laboratories had a net margin of 24.41% and a return on equity of 64.42%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. will post 11.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Jonathan Jay Mazelsky sold 29,260 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $631.98, for a total transaction of $18,491,734.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 83,311 shares in the company, valued at $52,650,885.78. This represents a 25.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director M Anne Szostak sold 1,260 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $512.34, for a total transaction of $645,548.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,801 shares of the company's stock, valued at $922,724.34. This trade represents a 41.16% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 47,120 shares of company stock worth $29,457,738. Insiders own 0.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on IDXX. Leerink Partners upped their price objective on IDEXX Laboratories from $580.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of IDEXX Laboratories from $550.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $640.00 price objective on IDEXX Laboratories in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of IDEXX Laboratories from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of IDEXX Laboratories from $510.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $644.67.

IDEXX Laboratories Company Profile

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc develops, manufactures, and distributes products primarily for the companion animal veterinary, livestock and poultry, dairy, and water testing markets in Africa, the Asia Pacific, Canada, Europe, Latin America, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Companion Animal Group; Water Quality Products; and Livestock, Poultry and Dairy.