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Investing.com - Leerink Partners has raised its price target on ICON plc (NASDAQ:ICLR) to $240.00 from $195.00 while maintaining an Outperform rating on the stock. The new target aligns with the broader analyst consensus, as ICON, with its $15.66 billion market cap, has seen its shares surge 14.3% in the past week.
The research firm cited ICON’s significant outperformance in gross bookings, which exceeded expectations by more than $300 million, helping to offset the high cancellation rate that was anticipated in the quarter.
Leerink Partners highlighted strength in the biotech segment as a notable positive factor, along with expanded pharmaceutical partnerships that contributed to the company’s performance.
The firm described ICON as "executing as best as possible in what has been a tough end market," noting that the company’s valuation remains discounted, especially considering what Leerink characterized as "depressed earnings growth."
The new price target is based on approximately 13 times calendar year 2026 EV/EBITDA multiple, up from about 11 times previously, though Leerink noted this multiple still remains below the company’s historical average.
In other recent news, Icon plc reported second-quarter earnings that exceeded analyst expectations, leading to a notable development for the company. The company posted adjusted earnings of $3.26 per diluted share, surpassing the analyst estimates of $3.19. Revenue for the quarter came in at $2.02 billion, which was above the consensus estimate of $1.98 billion. However, this revenue figure represents a 4.8% decrease compared to the same quarter last year. Despite this decline, Icon raised its full-year guidance, indicating a positive outlook for the remainder of the year. In a separate development, Baird upgraded Icon’s stock rating from Neutral to Outperform, raising the price target significantly from $150.00 to $224.00. Baird’s upgrade suggests optimism about the company’s recovery, even though they noted that the financial performance is not yet robust. These recent developments highlight significant interest and activity surrounding Icon plc.
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