IQVIA Holdings Inc. (IQV) Earnings & Analysis

Latest quarter

IQVIA reported Q2 FY2026 revenue of $4.4 billion, up 8.74% from $4.0 billion a year earlier. The company reported adjusted EPS, as the consensus counts it, of $3.15 against a $3.02 consensus, while revenue of $4.4 billion compared with consensus revenue of $4.3 billion.

The filing said Commercial Solutions revenue increased $142 million, or 8.6%, and Research & Development Solutions revenue increased $209 million, or 8.8%, from the prior-year quarter. IQVIA attributed the Commercial Solutions increase primarily to the Americas and the Research & Development Solutions increase primarily to Europe and Africa. The filing attributed Research & Development Solutions’ constant-currency growth to higher clinical-services and lab-testing volumes.

IQVIA reported a 32.9% gross margin and an 11.6% operating margin, compared with 32.9% and 12.6%, respectively, a year earlier. The company reported free cash flow of $360.0 million, compared with $292.0 million in Q2 FY2025. IQVIA reported Q2 revenue above its $4.3 billion–$4.3 billion guidance range.

Adjusted EPS is the figure the consensus estimates, not the GAAP EPS above.

What management said on the call

Ari Bousbib told analysts that client use of AI in discovery had been under way for more than two or three years and would increase demand for contract research organization services. The chief executive said clients were asking IQVIA to prepare capacity as additional molecules enter development, and that some large-pharma clients were predicting they would double their study portfolios. Bousbib said outsourcing demand reflected clients’ need for global capacity, domain and regulatory expertise, site relationships, therapeutic coverage, data and recruitment capabilities.

Bousbib said request-for-proposal flows increased by strong double digits during the quarter and that win rates had risen. He attributed the booking activity to broad-based demand and to funding growth in the EBP segment, which he said can translate into awards after six months to two years. He also said IQVIA uses contracted bookings that require a signature both to record a booking and to record a cancellation.

Analysts pressed management on the quality of Research & Development Solutions backlog and inactive trials. Mike Fedop said the team was reviewing the backlog and would finalize its work in the third quarter. Fedop said a potential inactive-trial adjustment was in the ballpark of 5% and would have zero impact on historical financial results, guidance or next-12-month revenue from backlog.

Fedop said foreign-exchange tailwinds, acquisitions primarily involving Charles River, and productivity programs were among the inputs to the full-year margin outlook. The chief financial officer said the acquired business carries lower margins, while productivity programs are delivering incremental EBITDA margin and value. Fedop said IQVIA was maintaining flat margins for the year and seeing accelerating growth in both Commercial Solutions and Research & Development Solutions during 2026.

Guidance

IQVIA raised its FY2026 revenue guidance to $17.3 billion–$17.5 billion from $17.2 billion–$17.4 billion. The company set FY2026 non-GAAP EBITDA guidance at $4.0 billion–$4.1 billion, compared with its prior adjusted EBITDA guidance of $4.1 billion–$4.3 billion. IQVIA raised FY2026 non-GAAP EPS guidance to $12.80–$13.00 from its prior EPS guidance of $12.65–$12.95.