Sterling Investment Counsel LLC Buys Shares of 2,837 IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV)

Sterling Investment Counsel LLC bought a new stake in IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 2,837 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $500,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of IQVIA during the fourth quarter worth $336,041,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of IQVIA during the fourth quarter worth $236,120,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of IQVIA by 396.0% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,134,737 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $222,987,000 after purchasing an additional 905,960 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of IQVIA by 53.4% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,590,260 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $509,012,000 after purchasing an additional 902,226 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its holdings 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 worth $841,461,000 after purchasing an additional 712,958 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.62% of the company's stock.

IQVIA Stock Up 0.3%

IQVIA stock opened at $154.63 on Thursday. IQVIA Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $134.65 and a fifty-two week high of $252.88. The stock has a market cap of $26.75 billion, a PE ratio of 21.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.28. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $147.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $176.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82.

IQVIA (NYSE:IQV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The medical research company reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $3.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.77 billion. IQVIA had a net margin of 8.61% and a return on equity of 29.16%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.54 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that IQVIA Holdings Inc. will post 10.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC downgraded shares of IQVIA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $260.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of IQVIA from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Redburn Partners set a $188.00 price target on shares of IQVIA in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of IQVIA from $255.00 to $185.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of IQVIA from $263.00 to $216.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $226.32.

IQVIA Profile

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.

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