IQVIA Holdings Inc. (IQV): A Bull Case Theory

We came across a bullish thesis on IQVIA Holdings Inc. on Rebound Capital’s Substack. In this article, we will summarize the bulls’ thesis on IQV. IQVIA Holdings Inc.’s share was trading at $191.15 as of August 22^nd. IQV’s trailing and forward P/E were 27.70 and 16.21 respectively according to Yahoo Finance.

IQVIA Holdings has established itself as a leading enabler for pharmaceutical and healthcare companies by combining data, technology, and outsourced expertise to accelerate drug development and commercialization. Its largest business, Research & Development Solutions (55% of revenue), manages the end-to-end clinical trial process, from study design and patient recruitment to data analysis and regulatory filings, allowing drugmakers to focus on core R&D.

Technology & Analytics Solutions (40% of revenue) monetizes IQVIA’s vast repository of de-identified healthcare data, providing insights to optimize trial design, monitor outcomes, and support commercialization. The remaining Contract Sales & Medical Solutions (5% of revenue) focuses on the final stage of drug launches by providing software and personnel support for sales execution.

Following a 200% surge from 2020 to 2021, the stock has undergone a prolonged drawdown over the past three years, largely driven by a biotech funding downturn between 2022 and 2024. This slump constrained financing for small and mid-cap biotech companies, delaying or cancelling trials and weighing on backlog conversion across the outsourced clinical research sector, dampening sentiment toward IQVIA.

However, with the Federal Reserve signaling rate cuts, the prospect of a renewed biotech funding cycle could provide a tailwind. Even without that catalyst, IQVIA’s fundamentals remain solid: its R&DS backlog stands at $32.1 billion, with $8.1 billion expected to convert over the next 12 months, ensuring visibility into near-term revenue growth.

Further strengthening its positioning, IQVIA has resolved long-running legal disputes with Veeva and entered into long-term clinical and commercial collaborations. This alignment allows IQVIA to run trials on Veeva’s Clinical Suite and integrate its analytics with Veeva applications under streamlined third-party access, enabling joint deals and easier cross-selling. These developments improve execution capacity, deepen client stickiness, and set the stage for both organic growth recovery and multiple expansion.

Previously we covered a bullish thesis on ICON Public Limited Company (ICLR) by DeepValue Capital in April 2024, which highlighted its scalable CRO model, robust backlog, and long-term trial demand. The stock has depreciated about 60% since, as biotech funding pressures weighed on sentiment. The thesis still stands given pipeline needs. Rebound Capital shares a similar view with IQVIA, emphasizing data scale and Veeva resolution.

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Disclosure: None.