Biondo Investment Advisors LLC Has $17.68 Million Holdings in IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX)

Biondo Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 42,757 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 85 shares during the quarter. IDEXX Laboratories comprises about 2.4% of Biondo Investment Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Biondo Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in IDEXX Laboratories were worth $17,677,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in IDEXX Laboratories by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,259,537 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,138,732,000 after acquiring an additional 40,349 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in IDEXX Laboratories by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,412,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $675,259,000 after purchasing an additional 34,305 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in IDEXX Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at $412,258,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in IDEXX Laboratories by 30.9% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 809,814 shares of the company’s stock valued at $334,810,000 after buying an additional 191,385 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its position in IDEXX Laboratories by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 758,669 shares of the company’s stock worth $328,018,000 after buying an additional 56,837 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.84% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of IDEXX Laboratories in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of IDEXX Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on IDEXX Laboratories from $559.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded IDEXX Laboratories to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on IDEXX Laboratories from $475.00 to $535.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $533.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP George Fennell sold 9,986 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were 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 owns 8,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,781,645.28. This trade represents a 54.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director M Anne Szostak sold 3,000 shares of IDEXX Laboratories stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $465.94, for a total transaction of $1,397,820.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,061 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,426,242.34. This trade represents a 49.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.11% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

IDEXX Laboratories Stock Performance

NASDAQ IDXX opened at $415.87 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $437.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $443.27. The stock has a market cap of $33.71 billion, a PE ratio of 38.98, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.31. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $398.50 and a fifty-two week high of $548.88.

IDEXX Laboratories Profile

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.