A quality holding back ICON from the top tier of stewards is its managers' limited personal investments in their respective products, which helps to align portfolio manager and shareholder interests. Currently, none of the firm’s assets are covered by invested managers. Open-end and exchange-traded fund fees are a weakness at the firm, contributing negatively to the rating. On average, the firm charges fees on its funds that are in the second most-expensive quintile of category peers. With the current market environment of fee compression, this is cause for concern, as investors may flock to alternate asset managers over time to get a better deal. Looking at the firm's risk-adjusted performance, its fund lineup compares similarly to competitors. Across its open-end and exchange-traded funds, the firm's average five-year Morningstar Rating is 3.1 stars.
Icon Reports Strong Q4 Results
We continue to have a positive long-term outlook for this biotech contract research organization.