ICLR stock outlook steady despite mixed biotech recovery, says JPMorgan

Published 14/01/2025, 17:16
ICLR stock outlook steady despite mixed biotech recovery, says JPMorgan

Tuesday, ICON plc (NASDAQ:ICLR), a profitable healthcare services company with a market capitalization of $17 billion, received a reiterated Overweight rating and a $280.00 price target from JPMorgan, following the company's issuance of its 2025 guidance.

According to the guidance, ICON anticipates revenue between $8.050 billion and $8.650 billion, compared to the Street's expectation of $8.496 billion. The company also forecasts adjusted earnings per share (EPS) in the range of $13.00 to $15.00, against a Street consensus of $14.83. InvestingPro analysis suggests ICON is currently undervalued, with a P/E ratio of 24x that appears attractive relative to its growth potential.

The growth at the midpoint of the guidance suggests a 1% year-over-year increase, aligning with the company's previous indications of low to mid-single-digit year-over-year organic growth mentioned during the third quarter. ICON highlighted that its outlook for 2025 includes challenges from its top two customers and an uneven recovery in the biotech sector.

However, these are expected to be partly mitigated by gains from strategic partnerships. According to InvestingPro, ICON maintains a strong financial health score of 3.48 (rated as GREAT), with robust profitability metrics and a healthy current ratio of 1.34.

ICON also confirmed its 2024 outlook, projecting revenues to be between $8.260 billion and $8.300 billion, which is in line with the Street's forecast of $8.276 billion. The adjusted EPS for 2024 is anticipated to be between $13.90 and $14.10, closely matching the Street's estimate of $13.98. The company's press release noted that the trailing twelve-month book-to-bill ratio for the fourth quarter stood at 1.2.

In the fourth quarter, ICON repurchased $400 million worth of its stock, totaling $500 million for the year 2024. The company still has $250 million authorized for future repurchases. The firm is scheduled to present at a JPMorgan conference today at 3:45 PM PT, where investor attention will likely focus on the details of the 2025 guidance, including demand projections in large pharma and biotech sectors, end-of-year booking trends, and expected margin progression into 2025.

For deeper insights into ICON's financial health and growth prospects, investors can access the comprehensive Pro Research Report available exclusively on InvestingPro, which includes detailed analysis of the company's competitive position and growth drivers.

In other recent news, ICON plc has issued its financial guidance for 2025, projecting a modest revenue growth and steady earnings per share (EPS). The company's revenue is anticipated to be between $8.05 billion and $8.65 billion, with EPS expected to range from $13.00 to $15.00.

TD Cowen reaffirmed its Buy rating and $285.00 price target on ICON, while Jefferies lowered ICON's price target to $275 but maintained its Buy rating, and RBC Capital Markets retained its Outperform rating on ICON stock with a price target of $263.00. ICON also announced the appointment of Barry Balfe as its new Chief Operating Officer. These are recent developments surrounding ICON plc.

This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers
© 2007-2025 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.