Robert W. Baird Cuts Medpace (NASDAQ:MEDP) Price Target to $477.00

Key Points

• Robert W. Baird cut its price target on Medpace from $565 to $477 while maintaining an "outperform" rating, implying roughly 21% upside; the Street consensus target sits near $475.25.
• Medpace beat Q1 estimates with $706.6M in revenue (+26.5% YoY) and $4.28 EPS, and reiterated FY2026 guidance of $16.68–$17.50 EPS with revenue roughly $2.8–$2.9B.
• Near‑term risk factors include a weak net book‑to‑bill of ~0.88 and rising cancellations, the announced retirement of President Jesse Geiger plus a large insider sale, and multiple class‑action filings that increase investor uncertainty.

Medpace (NASDAQ:MEDP - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by Robert W. Baird from $565.00 to $477.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird's price objective suggests a potential upside of 21.24% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Medpace from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, January 17th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Medpace from $555.00 to $539.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Mizuho set a $582.00 target price on shares of Medpace in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Medpace in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Medpace from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $560.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $475.25.

Medpace Stock Performance

Shares of MEDP stock opened at $393.42 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $470.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $536.55. Medpace has a one year low of $284.10 and a one year high of $628.92. The firm has a market cap of $11.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.39.

Medpace (NASDAQ:MEDP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.74 by $0.54. Medpace had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 149.31%. The firm had revenue of $706.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $697.82 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.67 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 26.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Medpace has set its FY 2026 guidance at 16.680-17.500 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Medpace will post 17.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, President Jesse J. Geiger sold 31,707 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.30, for a total value of $14,436,197.10. Following the sale, the president directly owned 15,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,829,500. This trade represents a 67.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 20.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Medpace

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Medpace in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new stake in shares of Medpace in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Medpace by 64.9% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 94 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Medpace in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Medpace in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. 77.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Medpace

Here are the key news stories impacting Medpace this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat on sales and earnings: Medpace posted $706.6M revenue (+26.5% YoY) and $4.28 GAAP EPS, each above consensus, showing continued top-line growth and margin strength. This supports the company’s long-term profitability thesis. Earnings Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Backlog conversion outlook vs. cancellations: Management said roughly $1.94B of backlog is expected to convert in the next 12 months — a positive indicator for near-term revenue — but also noted rising cancellations, which clouds forward visibility. Investors will watch conversion cadence closely. Backlog Conversion Article
• Neutral Sentiment: FY2026 guidance maintained but not clearly above street: Medpace maintained EPS guidance of $16.68–$17.50 and revenue near $2.8B–$2.9B; the EPS range slightly brackets consensus, leaving room for debate whether guidance is conservative or disappointing. Press Release
• Negative Sentiment: Booking weakness — book-to-bill below 1.0: Net new business awards were $618.4M in Q1, producing a net book-to-bill of ~0.88x, signaling bookings lagging billed revenue and stoking concerns about near-term demand sustainability. That was the primary driver of the sharp share decline. Investor Coverage of Booking Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Leadership change disclosed: The company disclosed President Jesse Geiger plans to retire effective May 31, 2026, with the CEO temporarily reassuming the role — an unexpected governance change that added to investor uncertainty. QuiverQuant Report
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple securities class-action notices filed: Several law firms have announced investigations and class-action filings tied to alleged misstatements about growth and bookings; potential litigation is a headline risk and could pressure sentiment. Class Action Notice Investor Deadline Notice

About Medpace

Medpace Holdings, Inc NASDAQ: MEDP is a global contract research organization (CRO) that provides comprehensive clinical development services to biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device companies. The company supports clinical trials across all phases (I–IV), offering end-to-end solutions designed to streamline the development process and accelerate the delivery of new therapies to market.

Medpace's core service offerings include clinical pharmacology, regulatory affairs consulting, project management, central laboratory services, imaging, data management and biostatistics, pharmacovigilance and medical writing.

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