Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS Acquires 35,600 Shares of IQVIA Holdings Inc. $IQV

Key Points

• Kornitzer Capital Management increased its IQVIA stake by 335.8% in the first quarter, buying 35,600 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 46,200 shares worth about $7.88 million.
• IQVIA reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $2.90 versus $2.83 expected and revenue of $4.15 billion, up 8.4% from a year earlier.
• The company also authorized a $2 billion share buyback, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $224.82.

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS raised its holdings in shares of IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV - Free Report) by 335.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 46,200 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 35,600 shares during the quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS's holdings in IQVIA were worth $7,879,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG grew its holdings in shares of IQVIA by 174.3% during the fourth quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 12,827 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,891,000 after purchasing an additional 8,151 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of IQVIA by 23.9% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 55,830 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $12,585,000 after purchasing an additional 10,762 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC purchased a new stake in IQVIA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $15,724,000. Calamos Advisors LLC lifted its position in IQVIA by 268.1% during the fourth quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 188,707 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $42,536,000 after purchasing an additional 137,441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HF Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in IQVIA by 1,791.6% in the 4th quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC now owns 154,618 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $34,852,000 after buying an additional 146,444 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.62% of the company's stock.

IQVIA Trading Down 0.4%

IQVIA stock traded down $0.84 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $208.13. The company's stock had a trading volume of 747,394 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,464,238. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $181.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $188.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75. IQVIA Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $154.50 and a 12 month high of $247.04. The stock has a market cap of $34.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.20.

IQVIA (NYSE:IQV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The medical research company reported $2.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.83 by $0.07. IQVIA had a return on equity of 30.50% and a net margin of 8.33%.The firm had revenue of $4.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.10 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.70 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. IQVIA has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.650-12.950 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that IQVIA Holdings Inc. will post 11.6 EPS for the current year.

IQVIA announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical research company to reacquire up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $200.00 price objective (down from $225.00) on shares of IQVIA in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of IQVIA from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $185.00 target price on shares of IQVIA in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded IQVIA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 27th. Finally, HSBC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $240.00 price objective on shares of IQVIA in a report on Monday. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $224.82.

IQVIA Profile

IQVIA NYSE: IQV is a global provider of advanced analytics, technology solutions and contract research services to the life sciences industry. The company combines clinical research capabilities with large-scale health data and analytics to support drug development, regulatory reporting, commercial strategy and real‑world evidence generation. IQVIA traces its current form to the combination of Quintiles and IMS Health announced in 2016 and subsequently rebranded as IQVIA, bringing together long-established clinical research operations and extensive healthcare information assets.

IQVIA's principal activities include outsourced clinical development services (acting as a contract research organization for phases I–IV), real‑world evidence and observational research, regulatory and safety services, and a suite of technology platforms that enable data integration, analytics and operational management.

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