Insider Selling: IDEXX Laboratories (NASDAQ:IDXX) Director Sells $844,884.00 in Stock

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX) Director Daniel Junius sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $704.07, for a total value of $844,884.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,662,309.27. This trade represents a 33.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

IDEXX Laboratories Trading Up 0.8%

NASDAQ IDXX opened at $676.04 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $546.75 and its 200-day moving average is $573.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.59 and a beta of 1.55. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. has a one year low of $500.61 and a one year high of $769.98.

IDEXX Laboratories (NASDAQ:IDXX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The company reported $3.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.25. IDEXX Laboratories had a net margin of 25.36% and a return on equity of 71.04%. The company had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.22 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. will post 15.05 EPS for the current year.

Key IDEXX Laboratories News

Here are the key news stories impacting IDEXX Laboratories this week:

• Positive Sentiment: A Zacks article says IDEXX’s above-average financial growth could help it outperform, bolstering the growth-investment case. Zacks growth-investor article
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target on IDXX, a potentially supportive analyst signal; the available report does not state the revised target. Morgan Stanley price-target report
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results beat expectations: IDEXX reported EPS of $3.96 versus $3.71 expected and revenue of $1.21 billion versus $1.19 billion expected. Revenue grew 9.9% year over year. IDEXX quarterly results analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Four directors and executives sold a combined 39,225 shares on November 4, worth about $27.4 million, and each reduced their reported holdings. The sales may weigh on sentiment, although insider transactions do not by themselves indicate a negative company outlook. Insider-trading report
• Negative Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha article downgraded IDXX, arguing the shares are expensive despite the company’s business quality. Valuation concerns could temper the positive effect of earnings growth. IDEXX valuation downgrade

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group upped their price target on IDEXX Laboratories from $627.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of IDEXX Laboratories from $795.00 to $705.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of IDEXX Laboratories from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. BTIG Research dropped coverage on IDEXX Laboratories in a research report on Friday, October 30th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Leerink Partners reduced their price target on IDEXX Laboratories from $725.00 to $715.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $719.55.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Diversified Trust Co raised its stake in IDEXX Laboratories by 41.1% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 1,825 shares of the company’s stock valued at $953,000 after purchasing an additional 532 shares in the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc grew its stake in IDEXX Laboratories by 1,131.8% in the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 92,508 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,307,000 after buying an additional 84,998 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 306,107 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,846,000 after buying an additional 7,953 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 51.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,843 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,023,000 after buying an additional 1,312 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of IDEXX Laboratories during the 3rd quarter valued at $272,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.84% of the company’s stock.

IDEXX Laboratories Company Profile

IDEXX Laboratories develops and sells diagnostic, technology and software products for veterinary, livestock and water-testing markets. Its veterinary offerings include in-clinic diagnostic instruments and tests, reference laboratory services, digital imaging and practice-management software that help veterinary professionals assess animal health and manage their practices.

The company also provides diagnostic tests and related services for livestock and poultry, as well as products used to monitor water quality.