Medpace (NASDAQ:MEDP) Sets New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Medpace Holdings, Inc. hit a new 52-week high with shares trading at $542.70, following a peak of $554.14 and a trading volume of 25,897 shares.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on Medpace, with a consensus rating of "Reduce", as several ratings were downgraded recently, including a "sell" from Cowen and a "hold" from Jefferies, despite some price targets being raised.
• Institutional investors hold 77.98% of Medpace's shares, with several firms significantly increasing their stakes in the latest quarter.

Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $554.14 and last traded at $542.70, with a volume of 25897 shares. The stock had previously closed at $544.41.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Cowen downgraded shares of Medpace from a "buy" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Medpace from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. TD Cowen restated a "sell" rating and issued a $366.00 target price (up previously from $283.00) on shares of Medpace in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Medpace from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 9th. Finally, UBS Group downgraded shares of Medpace from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $300.00 to $305.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Medpace currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $430.60.

Medpace Trading Down 0.2%

The company has a market capitalization of $15.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.41, a PEG ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 1.40. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $494.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $384.67.

Medpace (NASDAQ:MEDP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The company reported $3.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $603.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $537.70 million. Medpace had a return on equity of 67.66% and a net margin of 18.74%.Medpace's revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.75 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Medpace Holdings, Inc. will post 12.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO August J. Troendle sold 48,487 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $451.69, for a total value of $21,901,093.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 962,615 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $434,803,569.35. This trade represents a 4.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, President Jesse J. Geiger sold 41,801 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.11, for a total transaction of $18,940,451.11. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 36,503 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,539,874.33. This represents a 53.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 161,266 shares of company stock valued at $74,111,427 in the last ninety days. 20.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Medpace

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in Medpace by 1,600.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 221 shares of the company's stock worth $114,000 after buying an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Medpace by 108.7% in the 3rd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 4,180 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,149,000 after acquiring an additional 2,177 shares in the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC increased its position in shares of Medpace by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 17,331 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,911,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares during the last quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Medpace by 23.4% during the 3rd quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC now owns 20,663 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,624,000 after purchasing an additional 3,917 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Medpace by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,028 shares of the company's stock worth $529,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. 77.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Medpace Company Profile

Medpace Holdings, Inc engages in the provision of outsourced clinical development services to the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Its services include medical department, clinical trial management, data-driven feasibility, study-start-up, clinical monitoring, regulatory affairs, patient recruitment and retention, medical writing, biometrics and data sciences, pharmacovigilance, core laboratory, laboratories, clinics, and quality assurance.

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