Meritage Portfolio Management Increases Stock Holdings in Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP)

Meritage Portfolio Management lifted its stake in shares of Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP) by 5.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,986 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the period. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in Medpace were worth $915,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. RiverPark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Medpace during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Medpace during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Medpace during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in Medpace during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Medpace in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 77.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Medpace Stock Performance

Shares of Medpace stock traded up $6.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $395.85. 85,311 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 249,994. Medpace Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $189.30 and a 12 month high of $421.00. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $397.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $324.12. The company has a market capitalization of $12.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.38.

Medpace (NASDAQ:MEDP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The company reported $3.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.45 by $0.75. Medpace had a net margin of 15.92% and a return on equity of 59.74%. The firm had revenue of $511.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $512.39 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.27 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Medpace Holdings, Inc. will post 11.23 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Susan E. Burwig sold 102 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $403.00, for a total transaction of $41,106.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 15,181 shares in the company, valued at $6,117,943. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO August J. Troendle sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $412.98, for a total transaction of $41,298,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,833,019 shares in the company, valued at $1,995,940,186.62. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Susan E. Burwig sold 102 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $403.00, for a total transaction of $41,106.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 15,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,117,943. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 189,340 shares of company stock valued at $76,651,647 over the last three months. Insiders own 20.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MEDP shares. UBS Group upgraded Medpace from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $282.00 to $452.00 in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Medpace from $446.00 to $454.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Medpace from $453.00 to $464.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Medpace in a research report on Monday, March 18th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $395.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Medpace from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $340.00 to $450.00 in a report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $443.00.

About Medpace

Medpace Holdings, Inc provides clinical research-based drug and medical device development services in North America, Europe, and Asia. The company offers a suite of services supporting the clinical development process from Phase I to Phase IV in various therapeutic areas. It provides clinical development services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device industries; and development plan design, coordinated central laboratory, project management, regulatory affairs, clinical monitoring, data management and analysis, pharmacovigilance new drug application submissions, and post-marketing clinical support services.