IQVIA (NYSE:IQV) Sets New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $262.51 and last traded at $260.3030, with a volume of 53550 shares. The stock had previously closed at $259.42.

Analyst Ratings Changes

IQV has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of IQVIA from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings raised IQVIA from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on IQVIA from $210.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of IQVIA in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, William Blair upgraded IQVIA to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, IQVIA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $241.88.

IQVIA Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $216.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $188.02. The stock has a market cap of $42.92 billion, a PE ratio of 32.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.71.

IQVIA (NYSE:IQV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The medical research company reported $3.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.03 by $0.12. IQVIA had a net margin of 8.10% and a return on equity of 30.25%. The firm had revenue of $4.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.81 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. IQVIA has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.800-13.000 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that IQVIA Holdings Inc. will post 11.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

IQVIA announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical research company to purchase up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at IQVIA

In related news, insider Bhavik Patel sold 1,855 shares of IQVIA stock in a transaction on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.27, for a total value of $436,425.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 1,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $317,143.96. The trade was a 57.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Keriann Cherofsky sold 558 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.21, for a total value of $136,827.18. Following the sale, the insider owned 2,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $732,932.69. This trade represents a 15.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 12,913 shares of company stock valued at $3,098,793 over the last 90 days. 1.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On IQVIA

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of IQVIA by 18,735.4% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 49,241,537 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $9,514,450,000 after purchasing an additional 48,980,106 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in IQVIA by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,650,532 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,429,426,000 after buying an additional 159,899 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in IQVIA in the second quarter worth approximately $2,811,292,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in IQVIA by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,374,971 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $982,272,000 after acquiring an additional 24,453 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its stake in shares of IQVIA by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,087,380 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $923,276,000 after acquiring an additional 530,672 shares during the last quarter. 89.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

IQVIA Company Profile

IQVIA (NYSE: IQV) is a global provider of advanced analytics, technology solutions and contract research services to the life sciences industry. The company combines clinical research capabilities with large-scale health data and analytics to support drug development, regulatory reporting, commercial strategy and real‑world evidence generation. IQVIA traces its current form to the combination of Quintiles and IMS Health announced in 2016 and subsequently rebranded as IQVIA, bringing together long-established clinical research operations and extensive healthcare information assets.

IQVIA’s principal activities include outsourced clinical development services (acting as a contract research organization for phases I–IV), real‑world evidence and observational research, regulatory and safety services, and a suite of technology platforms that enable data integration, analytics and operational management.