ICON is Ireland’s global leader in medical research

Article Excerpt

ICON plc is a contract research organization (CRO) that provides support services to the medical manufacturing industry. ICON provides drug development and clinical trial services to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device firms. It is one of a few CROs with the global infrastructure to carry out late-stage, multinational trials. ICON ranks second in the world in the CRO category, among major competitors including IQVIA, Medspace, and Fortrea. The company has a market capitalization of $27 billion. It generated sales of $8.1 billion in 2023 with a net profit of $612 million. The company operates in 40 countries and has a client database of 580 million patients. Its major clients include Pfizer and Bristol Myers Squibb. The large patient database, combined with patient recruitment and consulting capabilities, are key competitive aspects of ICON’s business model. Even sophisticated large pharma clients cannot replicate those strengths themselves. The company is profitable, with earnings per share growth of 16% per year over the past 10 years. Profit margins are…