Icon (NASDAQ:ICLR) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume After Earnings Beat

Icon Plc (NASDAQ:ICLR - Get Free Report) saw strong trading volume on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. 2,249,984 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 72% from the previous session's volume of 1,309,037 shares.The stock last traded at $199.05 and had previously closed at $167.89.

The medical research company reported $3.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.08. Icon had a net margin of 9.25% and a return on equity of 11.46%. The business had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.98 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.75 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.8% on a year-over-year basis.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Icon from $290.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Icon from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $254.00 to $157.00 in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Barclays decreased their target price on Icon from $165.00 to $155.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Icon from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $265.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded Icon from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $150.00 to $224.00 in a research report on Thursday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Icon presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $203.42.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Icon in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Icon in the 2nd quarter valued at $48,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Icon during the 1st quarter worth $59,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Icon during the 1st quarter valued at about $69,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its stake in Icon by 1,772.7% during the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 412 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the period. 95.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Icon Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $15.90 billion, a PE ratio of 21.27, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $141.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $164.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

Icon Company Profile

ICON Public Limited Company, a clinical research organization, provides outsourced development and commercialization services in Ireland, rest of Europe, the United States, and internationally. The company specializes in the strategic development, management, and analysis of programs that support various stages of the clinical development process from compound selection to Phase I-IV clinical studies.

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