ICLR vs IQV vs TMO Stock Comparison

Icon, Iqvia Holdings and Thermo Fisher Scientific Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ICLR Icon Plc
$185.27 +13.0% 1M +2.9% 1Y
Market cap
$14.43B
P/E
43.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$8.33B
Div. yield
–
Contract Research Healthcare
2 wins
IQV Iqvia Holdings Inc.
$279.38 +4.2% 1M +27.0% 1Y
Market cap
$45.49B
P/E
33.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$16.98B
Div. yield
–
Contract Research Healthcare
4 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Thermo Fisher Scientific leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Thermo Fisher Scientific 5, Iqvia Holdings 4, Icon 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionICLRIQVTMOLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $14.43B $45.49B $254.18B TMO
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 43.9x 33.1x 36.5x IQV
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 18.1x 23.0x 26.1x ICLR
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +3.7% +8.2% +7.2% IQV
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 3.9% 8.1% 15.0% TMO
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 1.3% 8.3% 7.9% IQV
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 3.5x 4.1x 3.5x TMO
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +2.9% +27.0% +17.8% IQV
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -7.8%/yr +1.7%/yr +1.9%/yr TMO
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 73.7% 40.3% 29.8% TMO
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 69/100 65/100 59/100 ICLR

Percentile Scorecard

ICLRIQVTMO

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

AxisICLRIQVTMO
Valuation 90 #2 of 11 80 #3 of 11 60 #93 of 228
Growth 30 #8 of 11 80 #3 of 11 35 #144 of 222
Profitability 80 #3 of 11 90 #2 of 11 83 #37 of 210
Financial Health 75 #4 of 13 8 #12 of 13 28 #174 of 241
Shareholder Returns – – 88 #18 of 138
Overall 69 65 59
  • ICLR ranked among 13 companies in Pharma Services
  • IQV ranked among 13 companies in Pharma Services
  • TMO ranked among 248 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodICLRIQVTMOSPY
1 month +13.0%+4.2%+1.2% -1.0%
3 months +11.8%+34.4%+18.6% +2.9%
6 months +81.3%+72.2%+43.5% +6.4%
Year to date +1.7%+23.9%+16.3% +11.4%
1 year +2.9%+27.0%+17.8% +13.1%
3 years -21.7%+49.6%+47.1% +79.4%
3 years, per year -7.8%+14.4%+13.7% +21.5%
5 years -33.2%+8.8%+10.1% +67.7%
5 years, per year -7.8%+1.7%+1.9% +10.9%
10 years +119.2%+277.4%+347.3% +255.2%
10 years, per year +8.2%+14.2%+16.2% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureICLRIQVTMOSPY
Volatility, 1Y 73.7%40.3%29.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 88.0%39.3%28.3% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.450.730.59 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.040.670.60 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -76.9%-51.5%-41.5% -25.4%
From 52-week high -8.7%0.0%-3.3% -2.5%
52-week high $202.92$279.38$696.55 $779.14
52-week low $80.08$156.66$438.34 $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.

MultipleICLRIQVTMO
P/E now vs peer median 44.2xmedian 36.1x 33.7xmedian 36.1x 35.9xmedian 30.7x
P/S now vs peer median 1.7xmedian 2.7x 2.7xmedian 2.7x 5.4xmedian 3.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 23.7xmedian 37.4x 17.6xmedian 37.4x 25.9xmedian 17.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 16.1xmedian 21.1x 21.1xmedian 21.1x 34.0xmedian 23.7x
P/B now vs peer median 1.5xmedian 2.9x 7.3xmedian 2.9x 4.7xmedian 2.4x
PEG now vs peer median -3.58median 2.05 2.84median 2.05 4.27median 0.96

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 monthsICLRIQVTMO
Revenue $8.33B $16.98B $46.34B
Gross profit $2.01B $5.60B $18.91B
Operating income $325.64M $2.20B $8.15B
Net income $69.55M $1.38B $6.99B
Free cash flow $883.82M $2.18B $7.32B
R&D – – $1.40B
EPS (diluted) $4.16 $8.22 $18.78
Cash & equivalents $928.39M $1.91B $4.06B
Total debt $13.60B $16.00B $42.55B
Shares (diluted) 78.97M 167.30M 371.00M
Enterprise value $11.54B $37.19B $233.20B

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
MetricICLRIQVTMO
P/E 44.2x 33.7x 35.9x
P/FCF 16.1x 21.1x 34.0x
P/Operating cash flow 13.3x 16.3x 27.6x
P/S 1.7x 2.7x 5.4x
P/B 1.5x 7.3x 4.7x
P/Tangible book 2.3x 29.6x 7.3x
EV/EBITDA 23.7x 17.6x 25.9x
EV/EBIT 51.1x 27.2x 35.3x
EV/Revenue 2.0x 3.5x 6.2x
EV/FCF 18.8x 27.4x 39.3x
EV/Operating cash flow 15.6x 21.3x 31.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -3.58 2.84 4.27

Growth

14 metrics
MetricICLRIQVTMO
Revenue growth (1Y) 3.7% 8.2% 7.2%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 1.8% 5.0% 2.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -11.5% 4.1% 6.2%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -4.7% 3.1% 3.0%
Operating income growth (1Y) -66.6% 1.0% 10.0%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -28.0% 6.0% 6.7%
Net income growth (1Y) -91.0% 11.5% 6.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -48.5% 7.8% 6.9%
EPS growth (1Y) -59.0% 15.1% 7.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -12.3% 11.9% 8.4%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -7.4% 7.7% 18.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 26.1% 7.9% 5.4%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -10.7% 8.7% 18.6%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 32.4% 11.3% 7.7%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricICLRIQVTMO
Gross margin 24.2% 33.0% 40.8%
EBITDA margin 8.4% 20.1% 23.9%
Operating margin 3.9% 13.0% 17.6%
Pretax margin 1.6% 9.3% 16.5%
Net margin 3.9% 8.1% 15.0%
FCF margin 10.6% 12.9% 15.8%
Operating cash flow margin 12.8% 16.6% 19.5%
Return on equity 6.4% 21.8% 13.4%
Return on assets 3.7% 4.6% 6.2%
Return on invested capital 1.3% 8.3% 7.9%
Return on capital employed 2.6% 10.5% 8.3%
Asset turnover 0.5x 0.6x 0.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 15.4x 2.0x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 1.4% 1.6% 0.7%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricICLRIQVTMO
Debt / assets 20.7% 53.5% 37.6%
Debt / equity 0.4x 2.5x 0.8x
Net debt / EBITDA 3.5x 4.1x 3.5x
Debt / FCF 3.8x 7.3x 5.8x
Liabilities / assets 42.8% 78.9% 53.4%
Equity / assets 57.2% 21.1% 46.6%
Interest coverage 1.7x 2.9x 5.6x
Current ratio 1.0x 0.7x 1.6x
Quick ratio 0.6x 0.8x 1.0x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.2x 0.3x
Altman Z-score 1.97 2.25 3.98

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricICLRIQVTMO
Dividend yield – – 0.3%
Net buyback yield 1.7% 2.5% 2.0%
Shareholder yield 1.7% 2.5% 2.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 9.5%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 9.0%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 8.5%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 10.8%

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.

ConsensusICLRIQVTMO
Forward P/E 18.1xFY2026 23.0xFY2026 26.1xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $10.26FY2026 $12.14FY2026 $25.77FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -18.1%FY2026 +1.8%FY2026 +12.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +22.4% +13.4% +1.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $8.52BFY2026 $18.58BFY2026 $49.99BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +3.2%FY2026 +13.9%FY2026 +12.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -3.1% -3.5% -2.9%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersICLRIQVTMO
Held by institutions 100.0% 94.1% 90.2%
Institutions holding 422 1,083 2,621
Change in shares held, QoQ +5.5% +0.3% +0.8%
Institutions buying 233 530 1,141
Institutions selling 138 424 1,144
Buyers to sellers 1.69 1.25 1.00

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.

ICLRIQVTMO
ICLR 1.00 0.55 0.46
IQV 0.55 1.00 0.67
TMO 0.46 0.67 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ICLR, IQV and TMO?

Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) is the largest by market capitalisation: Icon (ICLR) $14.43B, Iqvia Holdings (IQV) $45.49B, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) $254.18B.

Which stock is cheaper, ICLR, IQV and TMO?

Iqvia Holdings (IQV) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Icon (ICLR) 43.9x, Iqvia Holdings (IQV) 33.1x, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) 36.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, Icon (ICLR) is cheapest (Icon (ICLR) 18.1x, Iqvia Holdings (IQV) 23.0x, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) 26.1x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Iqvia Holdings (IQV) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Icon (ICLR) +3.7%, Iqvia Holdings (IQV) +8.2%, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) +7.2%.

Which company is more profitable?

Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) has the highest net margin (Icon (ICLR) 3.9%, Iqvia Holdings (IQV) 8.1%, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) 15.0%). On return on invested capital, Iqvia Holdings (IQV) leads (Icon (ICLR) 1.3%, Iqvia Holdings (IQV) 8.3%, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) 7.9%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Iqvia Holdings (IQV) returned the most: Icon (ICLR) +2.9%, Iqvia Holdings (IQV) +27.0%, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) +17.8%. Over five years, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) compounded fastest (Icon (ICLR) -7.8%/yr, Iqvia Holdings (IQV) +1.7%/yr, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) +1.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Icon (ICLR) 0.00%, Iqvia Holdings (IQV) 0.00%, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) 0.00%. Icon (ICLR) and Iqvia Holdings (IQV) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) has been the steadiest (Icon (ICLR) 73.7%, Iqvia Holdings (IQV) 40.3%, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) 29.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ICLR, IQV and TMO?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) leads on 5. 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.