IDEXX Laboratories (NASDAQ:IDXX) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $432.65, but opened at $468.18. IDEXX Laboratories shares last traded at $464.20, with a volume of 122,012 shares.

The company reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.93 by $0.03. IDEXX Laboratories had a return on equity of 55.82% and a net margin of 22.78%. The company had revenue of $998.43 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $998.25 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.71 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on IDXX. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of IDEXX Laboratories from $475.00 to $535.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of IDEXX Laboratories from $450.00 to $420.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of IDEXX Laboratories from $559.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on IDEXX Laboratories from $435.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut IDEXX Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, IDEXX Laboratories has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $523.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP George Fennell sold 9,986 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $462.53, for a total transaction of $4,618,824.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,176 shares in the company, valued at $3,781,645.28. This trade represents a 54.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director M Anne Szostak sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $465.94, for a total value of $1,397,820.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,061 shares in the company, valued at $1,426,242.34. The trade was a 49.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in IDEXX Laboratories by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,446 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,011,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 635 shares of the company’s stock valued at $267,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the period. PDS Planning Inc boosted its position in shares of IDEXX Laboratories by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 641 shares of the company’s stock valued at $269,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in IDEXX Laboratories by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 382 shares of the company’s stock worth $158,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC increased its holdings in IDEXX Laboratories by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.84% of the company’s stock.

IDEXX Laboratories Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $38.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $419.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $428.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

About IDEXX Laboratories

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc develops, manufactures, and distributes products primarily for the companion animal veterinary, livestock and poultry, dairy, and water testing markets in Africa, the Asia Pacific, Canada, Europe, Latin America, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Companion Animal Group; Water Quality Products; and Livestock, Poultry and Dairy.