Lazard Asset Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Icon Plc $ICLR

Lazard Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Icon Plc (NASDAQ:ICLR) by 93.8% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 23,072 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 349,375 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Icon were worth $2,553,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ICLR. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Icon by 26.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,637,137 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $811,499,000 after acquiring an additional 975,268 shares in the last quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd raised its position in Icon by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 4,214,661 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $767,996,000 after acquiring an additional 75,843 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Icon by 9.6% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,756,896 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $684,582,000 after purchasing an additional 329,266 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Icon by 10.3% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,311,771 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $366,481,000 after purchasing an additional 310,236 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Icon by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,993,336 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $545,410,000 after purchasing an additional 239,808 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.61% of the company’s stock.

Icon Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ICLR opened at $163.57 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $156.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $135.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.03 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Icon Plc has a 52 week low of $66.57 and a 52 week high of $203.91.

Icon (NASDAQ:ICLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The medical research company reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2 billion. Icon had a net margin of 3.99% and a return on equity of 8.02%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.26 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Icon Plc will post 9.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Icon News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Icon this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Truist reaffirmed its “Buy” rating and raised its price target to $209 from $207, implying substantial upside based on the referenced share price. The target increase signals continued confidence in Icon’s long-term growth prospects. Benzinga analyst rating report
• Positive Sentiment: Icon reported second-quarter revenue of approximately $2.06 billion, above the roughly $2.00 billion consensus estimate, with revenue growing 2.3% from the prior-year period. The earnings call also emphasized a strong surge in bookings, supporting future revenue visibility. Q2 2026 earnings call highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded ICLR from “Strong Sell” to “Hold,” suggesting its view has improved even though the firm remains cautious. Zacks rating update
• Neutral Sentiment: Quarterly adjusted EPS was $2.56, narrowly above some consensus estimates of $2.55, although another Zacks estimate was $2.57. The mixed comparison makes the earnings beat less decisive for investors. Icon Q2 earnings snapshot
• Negative Sentiment: EPS fell sharply from $3.26 a year earlier, while the earnings call highlighted margin pressures. The weaker profitability, despite higher revenue and bookings, is likely the main factor tempering the bullish analyst commentary. ICON Q2 2026 earnings call transcript

Analyst Ratings Changes

ICLR has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Icon from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. UBS Group set a $160.00 price objective on Icon in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Leerink Partners set a $145.00 price objective on Icon in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Barclays increased their target price on Icon from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded Icon to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $170.40.

About Icon

Icon plc (NASDAQ: ICLR) is a global provider of outsourced drug development and clinical research services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries. The company partners with clients at all stages of the product life cycle, offering expertise in protocol design, trial execution and regulatory compliance across a broad range of therapeutic areas.

Icon’s service portfolio encompasses clinical trial management, data management and biostatistics, medical imaging, pharmacovigilance and safety monitoring, laboratory sciences and specialized analytical solutions.