ICLR NASDAQ Week ended 31 Jul 2026

Weekly Investor Report

ICON PLC · Healthcare · Diagnostics & Research

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Latest close 163.6 USD
-1.3% latest week
Weekly setup

Mixed setup

The weekly trend is active. Price is 20.0% above the Trend Line and sits at 70.6% of its 52-week range. The latest completed week returned -1.3%, after a -5.5% four-week move. The latest factor snapshot indicates quality is middle-of-the-pack; growth ranks weakly; valuation is neither clearly cheap nor expensive. Options positioning is volatility with 59/100 conviction, while the latest news-sentiment score is 57/100.

Setup score 47 out of 100
Latest Close 163.6 USD 31 Jul 2026
1W Return -1.3% latest completed week
4W Return -5.5% short-term follow-through
12W Return 31.4% quarterly tape
Trend Breadth 42.3% 22 of 52 weeks active
Volume Ratio 1.4x vs 13-week average
What is working
  • The trend backdrop is active with a 2-week active streak.
  • Price is above the Trend Line, keeping the weekly tape constructive.
  • Activity pressure is positive on the latest completed week.
  • Activity pressure is constructive, supporting the smart-money activity read.
What could go wrong
  • Price is below Fair Value, so the market is still discounting the latest tape.
What to watch next
  • Trend Line remains the key weekly regime level.
  • Activity pressure is the gauge to monitor for confirmation or fade.
  • A volume ratio above 1.5x would show stronger participation in the next move.
Price follow-through -1.3% Latest completed week; four-week move -5.5%. Indicator stack 30/68 Trend and activity pressure are weighted against the latest 12-week confirmation window. Trend backdrop Active The trend backdrop defines the current weekly regime. Patient Capital Quiet Activity-pressure buy-signal status for institutional accumulation timing. Options pressure Volatility 59/100 conviction; expected move 9.6%. News sentiment 57/100 33 relevant articles in the latest sentiment read. Event risk 29 Jul Latest stored earnings date was 29 Jul 2026.
01 · Price action

Where price is—and whether the trend supports it

The weekly trend is active. Price is 20.0% above the Trend Line and sits at 70.6% of its 52-week range. The latest completed week returned -1.3%, after a -5.5% four-week move.

Study the full chart

52-week price path

Price vs Trend Line and Fair Value
Price Trend Line Fair Value
02 · Volume and demand

Is real participation confirming the move?

Latest weekly volume is 1.4x the 13-week average. Participation is around or above normal and provides reasonable confirmation.

26-week volume confirmation

Bar height shows volume; colour shows the weekly price direction
6 Feb 13 Feb 20 Feb 27 Feb 6 Mar 13 Mar 20 Mar 27 Mar 3 Apr 10 Apr 17 Apr 24 Apr 1 May 8 May 15 May 22 May 29 May 5 Jun 12 Jun 19 Jun 26 Jun 3 Jul 10 Jul 17 Jul 24 Jul 31 Jul
Up week Down week
Demand beneath price

Activity pressure and institutional-style signals

These indicators assess whether participation is improving beneath the headline price move. They are supporting evidence, not proof of institutional buying.

Activity pressure path

Latest 0.6112-week average 0.34

12-week confirmation

Trend active2/12Active trend-backdrop weeks in the latest 12-week window.
Positive pressure11/12Weeks with constructive activity pressure in the latest 12-week window.
Positive leadership0/12Weeks with positive relative leadership in the latest 12-week window.
Activity pressure0.61Current proprietary activity-pressure read.
Buy signals1Accumulation signal count in the latest 12 weeks.
Reversal markers0No reversal markers

No recent accumulation markers. No reversal markers.

03 · Momentum and leadership

Is performance persistent—and is the stock leading?

Performance is -5.5% over four weeks, 31.4% over 12 weeks, and -1.7% over one year. The current trend has remained active for 2 consecutive weeks.

Performance by holding period

1W-1.3%
4W-5.5%
12W31.4%
26W-9.3%
52W-1.7%
Active trend streak2 weeks
Active weeks in one year22
Trend breadth42.3%

Activity pressure vs relative leadership

Activity pressureRelative leadership
Pressure0.99Latest activity-pressure read.
Pressure change-0.4%Four-week change in activity pressure.
Leadership-2.70Latest relative-leadership reading.
RS change-22.9%Four-week change in relative leadership.
04 · Fundamentals and valuation

What investors are paying for—and the quality behind it

The latest factor snapshot indicates quality is middle-of-the-pack; growth ranks weakly; valuation is neither clearly cheap nor expensive.

Open full factor analysis
Factor week 02 Aug 2026 Financial statements through 30 Jun 2026 Field coverage 94% Model confidence 94%

Relative factor standing

Higher display scores are better. Each score is converted from the underlying universe rank, where rank 1 is best.

Overall factor strength25/100Blend of value, momentum, and quality. Underlying universe rank 76; rank 1 is best.
Value29/100Relative valuation strength. Underlying universe rank 72; rank 1 is best.
Quality65/100Profitability and accounting quality. Underlying universe rank 36; rank 1 is best.
Momentum32/100Medium-term price momentum. Underlying universe rank 69; rank 1 is best.
Growth3/100Revenue and earnings growth. Underlying universe rank 98; rank 1 is best.
How to read this

Quality and valuation are separate questions

A strong company can still carry a demanding valuation. This report shows profitability, growth, balance-sheet strength, and the price paid for those characteristics separately.

Value-quality framework57/100Value and quality alignment from the Sharemaestro SVQF framework.

Valuation

How much investors are paying for earnings, sales, and cash flow.

P/E
181.5x
Price divided by trailing earnings.
Price / sales
1.5x
Market value relative to trailing revenue.
EV / EBITDA
19.8x
Enterprise value relative to operating cash earnings.
Free-cash-flow yield
8.4%
Free cash flow as a share of enterprise value.

Business quality

Margins and the return generated on invested capital.

Gross margin
21.9%
Gross profit retained from each unit of revenue.
Operating margin
8.4%
Operating profit retained from revenue.
Free-cash-flow margin
15.3%
Free cash flow generated from revenue.
Return on invested capital
4.9%
Operating return generated on invested capital.

Growth and financial strength

Recent business growth and accounting strength.

Revenue growth
3.0%
Latest one-year revenue growth.
EPS growth
-91.2%
Latest one-year earnings-per-share growth.
Free-cash-flow growth
-4.7%
Latest one-year free-cash-flow growth.
Piotroski F-score
6/9
Nine-point accounting-strength checklist.

Shareholder return and balance sheet

Cash returned to owners and financial leverage.

Dividend yield
-
Cash dividends relative to market value.
Buyback yield
1.9%
Net share repurchases relative to market value.
Shareholder yield
1.9%
Dividend yield plus net buyback yield.
Net debt / EBITDA
3.3x
Balance-sheet debt relative to operating cash earnings.
05 · Ownership, options, and sentiment

What other market participants are doing

Options, insider transactions, market sentiment, and activity-pressure signals can confirm or challenge the price story. None should be used alone.

Options positioningVolatility

ICLR shows volatility options pressure with a 59/100 conviction score, put-call volume ratio of 0.08, expected move of 9.6%, and Sharemaestro trend signal active.

Conviction59/100
Expected move9.6%
Put/call volume0.08
Pressure89
Speculation47
Volatility78
Trend agreement13
Open options detail
Insider activity-

No recent insider transactions are stored for this company.

News sentiment57/100

Weighted news tone is neutral across 33 relevant articles.

14 positive · 15 neutral · 4 negative
Patient CapitalQuiet

Activity-pressure buy-signal evidence highlights potential institutional accumulation windows.

No recent buy signal
06 · Catalysts and risk

What can move the shares—and how volatile the path has been

Event timing, options-implied movement, drawdown, and weekly return distribution frame the risk around the current setup.

Next earnings29 JulLatest stored earnings date was 29 Jul 2026.
Options expected move9.6%Nearest-chain priced movement where available.
52-week drawdown-19.8%Distance below the 52-week high.
13-week volatility7.3%Standard deviation of weekly returns.

Weekly gains and losses

Latest 26 completed weeks

Each bar is one week. Gains rise above the zero line; losses fall below it. Taller bars mean a larger weekly move.

Weeks higher14 of 2612 weeks finished lower.
Best week+16.5%Week of 29 May.
Worst week-38.2%Week of 13 Feb.
Latest week-1.3%Week of 31 Jul.

Shape of recent returns

Strong gains9
Modest gains5
Flat weeks0
Modest losses6
Sharp losses6
Recent vol7.3%13-week weekly-return volatility.
Base vol9.1%52-week weekly-return volatility.
Up/down split28/24Count of positive and negative weeks in the 52-week window.
Average skew6.1% / -6.2%Average positive week versus average negative week.
07 · Sector and peer context

Is this stock leading—or simply moving with its group?

Sector and industry breadth distinguish company-specific strength from a broad group move.

08 · Evidence and weekly data

The underlying research record

Every top-level statement above should be traceable to a stored market, fundamental, event, or positioning observation.

Weekly tape44/100

Trend, activity pressure, participation, and risk combine to a 44/100 tape read.

 Indicator analysis43/100

Latest 12-week confirmation: trend 2/12, activity pressure 11/12, relative leadership 0/12.

Activity pressure 0.61; No reversal markers Factors37/100

O'Shaughnessy factor stack blends value, quality, momentum, and confidence.

Buyback Yield rank 24; Small Cap Core rank 73 SVQF57/100

Value and quality alignment from the Sharemaestro SVQF framework.

Composite rank 319.0 of 745 Patient CapitalQuiet

Activity-pressure buy-signal evidence highlights potential institutional accumulation windows.

No recent buy signal Options41/100

ICLR shows volatility options pressure with a 59/100 conviction score, put-call volume ratio of 0.08, expected move of 9.6%, and Sharemaestro trend signal active.

Volatility · Volatility expansion watch · Expected move 9.6% Sentiment57/100

Weighted news tone is neutral across 33 relevant articles.

ICON plc Stock 12‑Month Price Target Raised to $187.6, Implies 13% Upside Insiders50/100

No recent insider transaction evidence is stored.

 Earnings29 Jul

Latest stored earnings date was 29 Jul 2026.

 Research flow2 items

0 recent research articles and 2 Market Watch posts are available.
WeekCloseReturnTrend LineFair ValuePressureLeadershipVolumeTrend
31 Jul 2026163.6 USD-1.3%136.4 USD215.3 USD0.99-2.706.8MOn
24 Jul 2026165.8 USD-2.5%137.2 USD215.8 USD0.94-1.343.9MOn
17 Jul 2026170.0 USD1.4%137.8 USD216.4 USD1.06-1.132.6MOff
10 Jul 2026167.7 USD-3.1%137.9 USD216.9 USD1.00-6.602.9MOff
3 Jul 2026173.1 USD1.9%138.5 USD217.4 USD1.00-2.194.2MOff
26 Jun 2026169.9 USD16.3%138.9 USD217.8 USD0.99-3.397.7MOff
19 Jun 2026146.0 USD-0.1%139.4 USD218.3 USD0.91-20.843.0MOff
12 Jun 2026146.2 USD-2.2%140.1 USD218.8 USD0.83-19.144.9MOff
5 Jun 2026149.4 USD9.8%140.6 USD219.4 USD0.70-15.907.0MOff
29 May 2026136.1 USD16.5%140.9 USD219.9 USD0.49-27.177.8MOff
22 May 2026116.8 USD0.3%142.1 USD220.4 USD0.20-36.013.1MOff
15 May 2026116.4 USD-6.5%144.2 USD221.0 USD-0.04-35.894.1MOff
8 May 2026124.5 USD10.3%146.4 USD221.6 USD-0.24-32.105.4MOff
1 May 2026112.8 USD10.5%148.4 USD222.1 USD-0.56-35.5411.6MOff
How to use this report

This is a completed-week research summary. It explains the available evidence and its conflicts; it does not predict a guaranteed outcome or replace your own risk assessment. Fundamental figures may refer to an earlier financial reporting period, which is shown above.