National Pension Service Boosts Position in IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV)

National Pension Service increased its holdings in IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 367,815 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,259 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service’s holdings in IQVIA were worth $85,105,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in IQV. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in IQVIA by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 14,847 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,435,000 after acquiring an additional 768 shares during the period. Everpar Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of IQVIA in the 4th quarter worth approximately $231,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in IQVIA by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,160,716 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $268,566,000 after buying an additional 28,598 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in IQVIA by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 5,215 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,207,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Spire Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of IQVIA by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,016 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $219,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. 89.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other IQVIA news, insider Ari Bousbib sold 31,678 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.53, for a total transaction of $7,936,289.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 796,752 shares in the company, valued at $199,610,278.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Ari Bousbib sold 31,678 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.53, for a total transaction of $7,936,289.34. Following the sale, the insider now owns 796,752 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,610,278.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Eric Sherbet sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.50, for a total transaction of $241,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 20,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,031,894. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 41,285 shares of company stock worth $10,331,003 in the last 90 days. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

IQVIA Stock Performance

IQVIA stock traded up $0.96 during trading on Thursday, reaching $228.84. The company had a trading volume of 207,111 shares, compared to its average volume of 956,330. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $243.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $225.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.52. IQVIA Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $167.42 and a 52 week high of $261.73.

IQVIA (NYSE:IQV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The medical research company reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.82 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $3.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.80 billion. IQVIA had a return on equity of 29.17% and a net margin of 9.01%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.54 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that IQVIA Holdings Inc. will post 10.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on IQV. SVB Leerink began coverage on shares of IQVIA in a report on Monday, February 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $290.00 price target on the stock. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on IQVIA from $254.00 to $245.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Guggenheim cut IQVIA from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on IQVIA from $297.00 to $292.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Leerink Partnrs reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of IQVIA in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, IQVIA has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $257.57.

IQVIA Profile

IQVIA Holdings Inc engages in the provision of advanced analytics, technology solutions, and clinical research services to the life sciences industry in the Americas, Europe, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. It operates through three segments: Technology & Analytics Solutions, Research & Development Solutions, and Contract Sales & Medical Solutions.