Empirical Finance LLC Invests $1.23 Million in Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP)

Key Points

• Empirical Finance LLC has made a new investment of approximately $1.23 million in Medpace Holdings, acquiring 4,046 shares in the first quarter.
• Institutional investors currently hold 77.98% of Medpace stock, with recent activity including significant purchases by Vanguard Group and Invesco Ltd.
• Medpace shares have a consensus rating of "Hold" from analysts, with a price target range that varies significantly from $270.00 to $510.00.

Empirical Finance LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 4,046 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,233,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whittier Trust Co. increased its position in Medpace by 47.3% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 109 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its position in Medpace by 150.0% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 175 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new position in Medpace during the 1st quarter valued at $60,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Medpace by 24.9% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 216 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in Medpace by 52.7% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 258 shares of the company's stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. 77.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Medpace Price Performance

MEDP stock traded up $0.01 during trading on Thursday, hitting $437.79. 155,052 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 461,298. Medpace Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $250.05 and a 1 year high of $501.30. The firm's 50 day moving average is $328.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $322.97. The stock has a market cap of $12.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.47.

Medpace (NASDAQ:MEDP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The company reported $3.10 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $603.31 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $537.70 million. Medpace had a net margin of 18.74% and a return on equity of 67.66%. Medpace's revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.75 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Medpace Holdings, Inc. will post 12.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Medpace from $328.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Medpace from $300.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. UBS Group downgraded shares of Medpace from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $300.00 to $305.00 in a research report on Tuesday. William Blair reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Medpace in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a "sell" rating and issued a $366.00 target price (up from $283.00) on shares of Medpace in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $406.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Medpace

In other Medpace news, President Jesse J. Geiger sold 41,801 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.11, for a total transaction of $18,940,451.11. Following the transaction, the president owned 36,503 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,539,874.33. This represents a 53.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Susan E. Burwig sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.14, for a total transaction of $3,376,050.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 57,500 shares in the company, valued at $25,883,050. This represents a 11.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 112,788 shares of company stock worth $51,018,354. 20.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Medpace

Medpace Holdings, Inc engages in the provision of outsourced clinical development services to the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Its services include medical department, clinical trial management, data-driven feasibility, study-start-up, clinical monitoring, regulatory affairs, patient recruitment and retention, medical writing, biometrics and data sciences, pharmacovigilance, core laboratory, laboratories, clinics, and quality assurance.