Insider Selling: IDEXX Laboratories (NASDAQ:IDXX) EVP Sells $2,740,098.56 in Stock

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX) EVP Michael Lane sold 3,979 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $688.64, for a total value of $2,740,098.56. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,076 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,806,896.64. This trade represents a 49.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

IDEXX Laboratories Trading Up 0.8%

IDEXX Laboratories stock opened at $676.04 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $546.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $573.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.19. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. has a one year low of $500.61 and a one year high of $769.98. The stock has a market cap of $53.27 billion, a PE ratio of 45.59 and a beta of 1.55.

IDEXX Laboratories (NASDAQ:IDXX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The company reported $3.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.25. IDEXX Laboratories had a return on equity of 71.04% and a net margin of 25.36%. The business had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.22 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. will post 15.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of IDEXX Laboratories

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Diversified Trust Co raised its position in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 41.1% during the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 1,825 shares of the company’s stock worth $953,000 after purchasing an additional 532 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc grew its position in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 1,131.8% in the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 92,508 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,307,000 after purchasing an additional 84,998 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 306,107 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,846,000 after purchasing an additional 7,953 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 51.8% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,843 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,023,000 after purchasing an additional 1,312 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in IDEXX Laboratories during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $272,000. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key IDEXX Laboratories News

Here are the key news stories impacting IDEXX Laboratories this week:

• Positive Sentiment: A Zacks article says IDEXX’s above-average financial growth could help it outperform, bolstering the growth-investment case. Zacks growth-investor article
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target on IDXX, a potentially supportive analyst signal; the available report does not state the revised target. Morgan Stanley price-target report
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results beat expectations: IDEXX reported EPS of $3.96 versus $3.71 expected and revenue of $1.21 billion versus $1.19 billion expected. Revenue grew 9.9% year over year. IDEXX quarterly results analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Four directors and executives sold a combined 39,225 shares on November 4, worth about $27.4 million, and each reduced their reported holdings. The sales may weigh on sentiment, although insider transactions do not by themselves indicate a negative company outlook. Insider-trading report
• Negative Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha article downgraded IDXX, arguing the shares are expensive despite the company’s business quality. Valuation concerns could temper the positive effect of earnings growth. IDEXX valuation downgrade

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on IDXX shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of IDEXX Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. BTIG Research dropped coverage on shares of IDEXX Laboratories in a research note on Friday, October 30th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of IDEXX Laboratories in a research note on Friday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $740.00 price objective for the company. Leerink Partners dropped their price objective on shares of IDEXX Laboratories from $725.00 to $715.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on IDEXX Laboratories from $795.00 to $705.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, IDEXX Laboratories currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $719.55.

About IDEXX Laboratories

IDEXX Laboratories develops and sells diagnostic, technology and software products for veterinary, livestock and water-testing markets. Its veterinary offerings include in-clinic diagnostic instruments and tests, reference laboratory services, digital imaging and practice-management software that help veterinary professionals assess animal health and manage their practices.

The company also provides diagnostic tests and related services for livestock and poultry, as well as products used to monitor water quality.