IQVIA (NYSE:IQV) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded IQVIA (NYSE:IQV) from a "hold" to a "buy" in its latest research note.
• Analysts overall lean positive — 2 Strong Buy, 13 Buy and 2 Hold — with a consensus price target of $226.63 versus a recent open near $176.48, implying notable upside.
• IQVIA recently beat quarterly expectations (EPS $3.42 vs. $3.40; revenue $4.36B vs. $4.24B) and set FY2026 guidance of $12.55–$12.85 EPS.

IQVIA (NYSE:IQV - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Sunday.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Mizuho set a $215.00 target price on IQVIA in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on IQVIA from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on IQVIA from $273.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of IQVIA in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets set a $250.00 target price on IQVIA in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $226.63.

IQVIA Price Performance

Shares of IQV opened at $176.48 on Friday. IQVIA has a 1 year low of $134.65 and a 1 year high of $247.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The company has a market capitalization of $29.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.39. The business has a 50-day moving average of $170.75 and a 200-day moving average of $203.91.

IQVIA (NYSE:IQV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The medical research company reported $3.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.02. IQVIA had a return on equity of 30.50% and a net margin of 8.34%.The company had revenue of $4.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.24 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.12 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. IQVIA has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.550-12.850 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that IQVIA will post 10.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On IQVIA

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Eubel Brady & Suttman Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in IQVIA in the third quarter valued at approximately $14,278,000. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC grew its stake in IQVIA by 33.6% in the third quarter. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC now owns 46,332 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $8,800,000 after acquiring an additional 11,657 shares during the period. OPTIMAS CAPITAL Ltd acquired a new stake in IQVIA in the third quarter valued at approximately $4,008,000. EDENTREE ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd acquired a new stake in IQVIA in the third quarter valued at approximately $7,368,000. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. grew its stake in IQVIA by 61.2% in the third quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 272,747 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $51,806,000 after acquiring an additional 103,567 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.62% of the company's stock.

About IQVIA

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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