Freedom Investment Management Inc. Boosts Stake in Icon Plc $ICLR

Freedom Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Icon Plc (NASDAQ:ICLR) by 27.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,065 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,084 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Icon were worth $737,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ICLR. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Icon in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Icon in the 2nd quarter worth $48,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Icon in the 2nd quarter worth $49,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Icon by 44.0% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 393 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its stake in Icon by 1,772.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 412 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. 95.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Icon Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:ICLR opened at $178.11 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Icon Plc has a 12 month low of $125.10 and a 12 month high of $234.60. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $178.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.45. The company has a market cap of $14.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.10, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.23.

Icon (NASDAQ:ICLR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $3.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.03. Icon had a net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 10.58%. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.98 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Icon Plc will post 13.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ICLR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 price target on Icon in a research note on Friday. Barclays cut their price target on Icon from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Rothschild Redb upgraded Icon from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price objective (down previously from $225.00) on shares of Icon in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised shares of Icon from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $184.00 to $236.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $207.14.

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.