Today we're going to take a look at the well-established IQVIA Holdings Inc. (NYSE:IQV). The company's stock had a relatively subdued couple of weeks in terms of changes in share price, which continued to float around the range of US$191 to US$210. However, is this the true valuation level of the large-cap? Or is it currently undervalued, providing us with the opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at IQVIA Holdings’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change.

See our latest analysis for IQVIA Holdings

What's The Opportunity In IQVIA Holdings?

Good news, investors! IQVIA Holdings is still a bargain right now according to our price multiple model, which compares the company's price-to-earnings ratio to the industry average. We’ve used the price-to-earnings ratio in this instance because there’s not enough visibility to forecast its cash flows. The stock’s ratio of 24.5x is currently well-below the industry average of 38.77x, meaning that it is trading at a cheaper price relative to its peers. What’s more interesting is that, IQVIA Holdings’s share price is quite volatile, which gives us more chances to buy since the share price could sink lower (or rise higher) in the future. This is based on its high beta, which is a good indicator for how much the stock moves relative to the rest of the market.

Can we expect growth from IQVIA Holdings?

Investors looking for growth in their portfolio may want to consider the prospects of a company before buying its shares. Although value investors would argue that it’s the intrinsic value relative to the price that matter the most, a more compelling investment thesis would be high growth potential at a cheap price. IQVIA Holdings' earnings over the next few years are expected to increase by 42%, indicating a highly optimistic future ahead. This should lead to more robust cash flows, feeding into a higher share value.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? Since IQV is currently below the industry PE ratio, it may be a great time to accumulate more of your holdings in the stock. With an optimistic outlook on the horizon, it seems like this growth has not yet been fully factored into the share price. However, there are also other factors such as capital structure to consider, which could explain the current price multiple.

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on IQV for a while, now might be the time to make a leap. Its buoyant future profit outlook isn’t fully reflected in the current share price yet, which means it’s not too late to buy IQV. But before you make any investment decisions, consider other factors such as the track record of its management team, in order to make a well-informed investment decision.

With this in mind, we wouldn't consider investing in a stock unless we had a thorough understanding of the risks. While conducting our analysis, we found that IQVIA Holdings has 1 warning sign and it would be unwise to ignore it.

If you are no longer interested in IQVIA Holdings, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.