Icon (NASDAQ:ICLR) Shares Gap Up - What's Next?

Key Points

• Icon shares gapped up premarket from $102.49 to an open of $116.25 and last traded around $113.84 on volume of ~600,106, with a 50‑day moving average of $106.21 versus a 200‑day average of $149.67 indicating recent strength but below the longer‑term trend.
• Analyst coverage is mixed—seven Buys, six Holds and three Sells—with an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $148.71; individual notes range from Bank of America's $75 underperform to BMO's $130 outperform and Jefferies' $135 buy.
• Institutions own about 95.61% of the stock, and several large investors (including Trinity Street and Stephens) increased their stakes in the first quarter, reflecting notable institutional inflows.

Icon Plc (NASDAQ:ICLR - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $102.49, but opened at $116.25. Icon shares last traded at $113.8370, with a volume of 600,106 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Leerink Partners reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of Icon in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Bank of America reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Icon in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Icon from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $135.00 price target on shares of Icon and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Icon from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Icon currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $148.71.

Icon Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The business's 50 day moving average is $106.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $149.67. The company has a market cap of $9.41 billion, a PE ratio of 15.76, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.28.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Stephens Inc. AR lifted its stake in shares of Icon by 102.0% during the 1st quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 10,547 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,167,000 after buying an additional 5,325 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Icon by 10.3% during the 1st quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 599,176 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $66,305,000 after buying an additional 56,180 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Icon by 22.5% during the 1st quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. now owns 319,003 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $35,301,000 after buying an additional 58,554 shares in the last quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Icon by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 14,015 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,551,000 after buying an additional 587 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trinity Street Asset Management LLP lifted its stake in shares of Icon by 12.7% during the 1st quarter. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP now owns 1,208,148 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $133,694,000 after buying an additional 135,720 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.61% of the company's stock.

Icon Company Profile

Icon plc NASDAQ: ICLR is a global provider of outsourced drug development and clinical research services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries. The company partners with clients at all stages of the product life cycle, offering expertise in protocol design, trial execution and regulatory compliance across a broad range of therapeutic areas.

Icon's service portfolio encompasses clinical trial management, data management and biostatistics, medical imaging, pharmacovigilance and safety monitoring, laboratory sciences and specialized analytical solutions.

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