ICLR vs CRL vs LDOS Stock Comparison

Icon, Charles River Laboratories International and Leidos Holdings Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ICLR Icon Plc
$182.98 +6.2% 1M +0.5% 1Y
Market cap
$14.01B
P/E
32.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$8.23B
Div. yield
–
Contract Research Healthcare
1 win
LDOS Leidos Holdings, Inc.
$139.65 +12.9% 1M -26.2% 1Y
Market cap
$17.52B
P/E
12.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$17.63B
Div. yield
1.23%
Defense Industrials
9 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Leidos Holdings leads on 9 of the 12 questions below (Leidos Holdings 9, Charles River Laboratories International 1, Icon 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionICLRCRLLDOSLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $14.01B $17.14B $17.52B LDOS
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 32.0x -72.3x 12.8x LDOS
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 17.9x 32.9x 11.0x LDOS
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +1.8% -0.7% +3.4% LDOS
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 5.4% -6.0% 7.8% LDOS
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 4.7% 1.6% 13.9% LDOS
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.3x 6.3x 2.3x LDOS
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — — 1.23% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +0.5% +83.9% -26.2% CRL
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -8.6%/yr -3.9%/yr +7.2%/yr LDOS
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 73.7% 45.9% 35.6% LDOS
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 81/100 45/100 70/100 ICLR

Percentile Scorecard

ICLRCRLLDOS

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisICLRCRLLDOS
Valuation 100 #1 of 11 60 #5 of 11 98 #3 of 100
Growth 70 #4 of 11 10 #10 of 11 58 #41 of 97
Profitability 80 #3 of 11 70 #4 of 11 86 #14 of 96
Financial Health 75 #4 of 13 42 #8 of 13 33 #71 of 105
Shareholder Returns – – 75 #17 of 65
Overall 81 45 70
  • ICLR ranked among 13 companies in Pharma Services
  • CRL ranked among 13 companies in Pharma Services
  • LDOS ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodICLRCRLLDOSSPY
1 month +6.2%+22.5%+12.9% -0.2%
3 months +1.5%+49.4%+18.0% +3.9%
6 months +78.5%+115.3%-4.4% +8.2%
Year to date +0.4%+80.0%-22.6% +12.9%
1 year +0.5%+83.9%-26.2% +12.3%
3 years -22.2%+108.0%+54.3% +87.4%
3 years, per year -8.0%+27.7%+15.6% +23.3%
5 years -36.1%-18.2%+41.7% +67.9%
5 years, per year -8.6%-3.9%+7.2% +10.9%
10 years +127.4%+369.5%+239.1% +261.1%
10 years, per year +8.6%+16.7%+13.0% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureICLRCRLLDOSSPY
Volatility, 1Y 73.7%45.9%35.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 87.6%43.0%37.2% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.441.270.26 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.011.83-0.74 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -76.9%-77.8%-50.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -9.8%0.0%-30.0% -1.2%
52-week high $202.92$359.04$199.55 $779.14
52-week low $80.08$149.93$100.00 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleICLRCRLLDOS
P/E now vs peer median 32.0xmedian 32.1x -72.3xmedian 32.1x 12.8xmedian 26.5x
P/S now vs peer median 1.7xmedian 2.6x 4.3xmedian 2.6x 1.0xmedian 3.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 15.2xmedian 38.1x 50.4xmedian 38.1x 9.8xmedian 14.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 16.3xmedian 21.5x 46.2xmedian 21.5x 8.1xmedian 26.4x
P/B now vs peer median 1.5xmedian 3.1x 6.0xmedian 3.1x 3.3xmedian 2.5x
PEG now vs peer median -13.47median 2.03 2.00median 2.03 0.45median 0.90

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsICLRCRLLDOS
Revenue $8.23B $4.00B $17.63B
Gross profit $1.93B $1.31B $3.14B
Operating income $718.25M $90.14M $2.03B
Net income $448.66M -$239.23M $1.40B
Free cash flow $857.06M $370.61M $2.16B
EPS (diluted) $5.68 $-4.97 $10.92
Cash & equivalents $808.98M $192.03M $748.00M
Total debt $3.38B $2.62B $21.66B
Shares (diluted) 78.97M 48.02M 126.00M
Enterprise value $10.78B $16.37B $14.29B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricICLRCRLLDOS
P/E 32.0x -72.3x 12.8x
P/FCF 16.3x 46.2x 8.1x
P/Operating cash flow 13.6x 29.4x 7.6x
P/S 1.7x 4.3x 1.0x
P/B 1.5x 6.0x 3.3x
P/Tangible book 2.3x 6.6x 4.0x
EV/EBITDA 15.2x 50.4x 9.8x
EV/EBIT 23.1x 217.0x 11.2x
EV/Revenue 2.0x 4.9x 1.3x
EV/FCF 19.3x 52.8x 10.5x
EV/Operating cash flow 16.1x 33.6x 9.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -13.47 2.00 0.45

Growth

14 metrics
MetricICLRCRLLDOS
Revenue growth (1Y) 1.8% -0.7% 3.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 0.9% -1.5% 5.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -13.4% -0.1% 4.8%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -6.5% -5.5% 14.4%
Operating income growth (1Y) 53.9% -27.6% -0.4%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -7.0% -48.2% 21.1%
Net income growth (1Y) 55.9% -268.7% -0.8%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -4.4% -35.5% 24.8%
EPS growth (1Y) 30.1% -253.8% 1.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -2.4% -36.2% 28.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -9.9% -26.1% 54.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 15.8% -2.3% 35.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -11.1% -35.9% 63.2%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 18.4% 8.6% 41.7%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricICLRCRLLDOS
Gross margin 23.4% 32.7% 17.8%
EBITDA margin 13.3% 9.7% 13.2%
Operating margin 8.7% 2.3% 11.5%
Pretax margin 6.3% -4.6% 10.2%
Net margin 5.4% -6.0% 7.8%
FCF margin 10.4% 9.3% 12.3%
Operating cash flow margin 12.5% 14.6% 13.0%
Return on equity 7.6% -8.2% 26.8%
Return on assets 4.3% -3.1% 9.0%
Return on invested capital 4.7% 1.6% 13.9%
Return on capital employed 5.3% 1.4% 16.5%
Asset turnover 0.5x 0.5x 1.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.3x -2.4x 1.6x
Stock comp / revenue 1.1% 2.1% 0.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricICLRCRLLDOS
Debt / assets 20.8% 34.8% 38.6%
Debt / equity 0.4x 0.9x 1.1x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.3x 6.3x 2.3x
Debt / FCF 3.9x 7.1x 2.8x
Liabilities / assets 43.8% 62.2% 65.9%
Equity / assets 56.2% 37.8% 34.1%
Interest coverage 3.4x 0.8x –
Current ratio 1.3x 1.3x 1.6x
Quick ratio 0.9x 0.8x 1.4x
Cash ratio 0.3x 0.2x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 2.07 3.08 3.20

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricICLRCRLLDOS
Dividend yield – – 1.2%
Net buyback yield 2.7% 1.9% 3.8%
Shareholder yield 2.7% 1.9% 5.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 15.5%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 10.0%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 3.3%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 2.8%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusICLRCRLLDOS
Forward P/E 17.9xFY2026 32.9xFY2026 11.0xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $10.25FY2026 $10.90FY2026 $12.75FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -18.2%FY2026 +6.0%FY2026 +6.3%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +22.2% +20.5% -9.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $8.52BFY2026 $3.82BFY2026 $17.52BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +3.2%FY2026 -4.9%FY2026 +2.0%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -3.2% +0.7% +14.9%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersICLRCRLLDOS
Held by institutions 100.0% 100.0% 79.3%
Institutions holding 422 570 773
Change in shares held, QoQ +5.5% -0.7% +4.1%
Institutions buying 233 270 380
Institutions selling 138 204 294
Buyers to sellers 1.69 1.32 1.29

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

ICLRCRLLDOS
ICLR 1.00 0.51 0.17
CRL 0.51 1.00 0.19
LDOS 0.17 0.19 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ICLR, CRL and LDOS?

Leidos Holdings (LDOS) is the largest by market capitalisation: Icon (ICLR) $14.01B, Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) $17.14B, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) $17.52B.

Which stock is cheaper, ICLR, CRL and LDOS?

Leidos Holdings (LDOS) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Icon (ICLR) 32.0x, Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) -72.3x, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 12.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) is cheapest (Icon (ICLR) 17.9x, Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) 32.9x, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 11.0x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Leidos Holdings (LDOS) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Icon (ICLR) +1.8%, Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) -0.7%, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) +3.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

Leidos Holdings (LDOS) has the highest net margin (Icon (ICLR) 5.4%, Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) -6.0%, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 7.8%). On return on invested capital, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) leads (Icon (ICLR) 4.7%, Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) 1.6%, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 13.9%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) returned the most: Icon (ICLR) +0.5%, Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) +83.9%, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) -26.2%. Over five years, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) compounded fastest (Icon (ICLR) -8.6%/yr, Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) -3.9%/yr, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) +7.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 1.23%. Icon (ICLR) and Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) has been the steadiest (Icon (ICLR) 73.7%, Charles River Laboratories International (CRL) 45.9%, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 35.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ICLR, CRL and LDOS?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) leads on 9. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.