Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Increases Position in IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. $IDXX

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management dramatically increased its IDEXX Laboratories stake in the fourth quarter, ending with 1.44 million shares worth about $977.2 million and representing roughly 1.81% of the company.
• Wall Street sentiment remains generally positive but has softened recently: several firms trimmed price targets, while the consensus rating is still “Moderate Buy” with an average target price of $751.
• IDEXX reported solid quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, but the stock was down about 0.8% and recent insider selling included notable transactions by the CEO and a director.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX - Free Report) by 63,503.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,444,445 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,442,174 shares during the quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. owned about 1.81% of IDEXX Laboratories worth $977,210,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in IDEXX Laboratories by 114.1% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 16,597 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,283,000 after purchasing an additional 8,845 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in IDEXX Laboratories by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 62,951 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,588,000 after purchasing an additional 6,710 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its stake in IDEXX Laboratories by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 60,225 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,477,000 after purchasing an additional 3,820 shares during the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 38,761 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,441,000 after buying an additional 4,909 shares during the period. Finally, Procyon Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of IDEXX Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,966,000. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on IDXX. BTIG Research decreased their price objective on IDEXX Laboratories from $830.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Barclays decreased their price objective on IDEXX Laboratories from $850.00 to $800.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Wall Street Zen cut IDEXX Laboratories from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, April 25th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on IDEXX Laboratories from $775.00 to $675.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut IDEXX Laboratories from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Monday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, IDEXX Laboratories has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $751.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sophie V. Vandebroek sold 1,464 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $628.62, for a total value of $920,299.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 648 shares in the company, valued at approximately $407,345.76. This represents a 69.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Jonathan Jay Mazelsky sold 23,326 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $657.55, for a total value of $15,338,011.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 83,606 shares of the company's stock, valued at $54,975,125.30. The trade was a 21.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 34,612 shares of company stock valued at $22,525,070 over the last ninety days. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

IDEXX Laboratories Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of IDXX opened at $528.79 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.12. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. has a one year low of $496.61 and a one year high of $769.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.94, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.58. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $572.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $645.56.

IDEXX Laboratories (NASDAQ:IDXX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $3.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.41 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.12 billion. IDEXX Laboratories had a return on equity of 70.87% and a net margin of 24.63%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.91 earnings per share. IDEXX Laboratories has set its FY 2026 guidance at 14.450-14.900 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About IDEXX Laboratories

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc NASDAQ: IDXX is a global developer, manufacturer and provider of diagnostic products and services primarily for the animal health, water testing and food safety markets. Headquartered in Westbrook, Maine, the company supplies in-clinic diagnostic instruments, consumables, reference laboratory testing and practice-management tools that support veterinarians, livestock and dairy producers, and utilities and food producers worldwide.

IDEXX's product portfolio includes point-of-care tests and immunoassays designed for rapid diagnosis in veterinary clinics, in-clinic chemistry and hematology analyzers, automated urinalysis systems, and digital diagnostic solutions.

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