Icon (NASDAQ:ICLR – Get Free Report) and Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH – Get Free Report) are both large-cap healthcare companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings and risk.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
95.6% of Icon shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 99.0% of Bio-Techne shares are held by institutional investors. 44.0% of Icon shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.3% of Bio-Techne shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares Icon and Bio-Techne”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Icon | $8.25 billion | 1.58 | $229.34 million | $4.26 | 39.99 |
| Bio-Techne | $1.22 billion | 9.34 | $181.86 million | $1.15 | 62.94 |
Icon has higher revenue and earnings than Bio-Techne. Icon is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Bio-Techne, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Risk & Volatility
Icon has a beta of 1.2, suggesting that its share price is 20% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Bio-Techne has a beta of 1.28, suggesting that its share price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Profitability
This table compares Icon and Bio-Techne’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Icon | 3.99% | 8.02% | 4.56% |
| Bio-Techne | 14.97% | 13.23% | 10.61% |
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent ratings for Icon and Bio-Techne, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Icon | 2 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 2.41 |
| Bio-Techne | 0 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 2.12 |
Icon currently has a consensus price target of $170.07, indicating a potential downside of 0.17%. Bio-Techne has a consensus price target of $68.92, indicating a potential downside of 4.78%. Given Icon’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Icon is more favorable than Bio-Techne.
Summary
Icon beats Bio-Techne on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Icon
ICON Public Limited Company, a clinical research organization, provides outsourced development and commercialization services in Ireland, rest of Europe, the United States, and internationally. The company specializes in the strategic development, management, and analysis of programs that support various stages of the clinical development process from compound selection to Phase I-IV clinical studies. It also offers clinical development services, including all phases of development, peri and post approval, data solutions, and site and patient access services; clinical trial management, consulting, and contract staffing services; and commercial services comprising clinical development strategy, planning and trial design, full study execution, and post-market commercialization. In addition, the company provides laboratory services, including bionanalytical, biomarker, vaccine, good manufacturing practice, and central laboratory services, as well as full-service and functional service partnerships to customers. Further, it offers adaptive trials, cardiac safety solutions, clinical and scientific operations, consulting and advisory, commercial positioning, decentralized and hybrid clinical trials, early clinical, laboratories, language services, medical imaging, real world intelligence, site and patient, and strategic solutions. The company serves pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device industries, as well as government and public health organizations. ICON Public Limited Company was incorporated in 1990 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.
About Bio-Techne
Bio-Techne Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and sells life science reagents, instruments, and services for the research and clinical diagnostic markets in the United States, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, Middle East, and Africa, Greater China, rest of Asia-Pacific, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Protein Sciences, and Diagnostics and Genomics. The Protein Sciences segment develops and manufactures biological reagents used in various aspects of life science research, diagnostics, and cell and gene therapy, such as cytokines and growth factors, antibodies, small molecules, tissue culture sera, and cell selection technologies. This segment also offers proteomic analytical tools for automated western blot and multiplexed ELISA workflow consists of manual and automated protein analysis instruments and immunoassays for use in quantifying proteins in various biological fluids. The Diagnostics and Genomics segment develops and manufactures diagnostic products, including controls, calibrators, and diagnostic assays for regulated diagnostics market, exosome-based molecular diagnostic assays, advanced tissue-based in-situ hybridization assays for spatial genomic and tissue biopsy analysis, and genetic and oncology kits for research and clinical applications; and sells products for genetic carrier screening, oncology diagnostics, molecular controls, and research, as well as instruments and process control products for hematology, blood chemistry and gases, and coagulation controls and reagents used in various diagnostic applications. The company was formerly known as Techne Corporation and changed its name to Bio-Techne Corporation in November 2014. Bio-Techne Corporation was incorporated in 1976 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
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