FORM 6-K

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

Report of Foreign Private Issuer
Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 under
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934


For the month ended January, 2017


ICON plc
(Registrant's name)


333-08704
(Commission file number)


South County Business Park, Leopardstown, Dublin 18, Ireland
(Address of principal executive offices)

Brendan Brennan, Chief Financial Officer
South County Business Park, Leopardstown, Dublin 18, Ireland.
Brendan.Brennan@iconplc.com
00-353-1-291-2000
(Name, telephone number, email and/or facsimile number and address of Company contact person)


Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover Form 20-F or Form 40-F.

              Yes___X___                                   No_______

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1):

              Yes______                                    No___X___

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7):

              Yes______                                    No___X___

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the information contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

              Yes_______                                   No___X___

If "Yes" is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the registrant in connection with Rule 12g3-2(b):82      N/A



EXHIBIT LIST

Exhibit

Description

 

99.1

ICON plc Press Release issued January 9, 2017 - ICON Issues Financial Guidance for Full Year 2017



SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

ICON plc

 
 
 

 

 

/s/ Brendan Brennan

Date:

January 9, 2017

Brendan Brennan

Chief Financial Officer

Exhibit 99.1

ICON Issues Financial Guidance for Full Year 2017

Highlights

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--January 9, 2017--ICON plc (NASDAQ:ICLR), a global provider of drug development solutions and services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries, today announced its financial guidance for the year ended December 31, 2017. For the full year 2017 revenue will be in the range of $1,700 - $1,750 million, representing growth of 2 - 5% and earnings per share will be in the range of $5.00 - $5.20, representing growth of 6 - 11%.

CEO Ciaran Murray commented “We expect 2017 to be another year of revenue and earnings growth for ICON. Our success in developing new customer relationships has further diversified our customer base and we expect to grow revenue by 2 - 5% while reducing the full year concentration of our largest customer to circa 15 - 17%. We continue to see good demand across all of our service lines from large pharma customers alongside a continuing flow of business from mid-size, speciality pharma and device companies. In addition to this organic growth we will continue to deploy capital to maximize shareholder value through a combination of “bolt-on” M&A that will enhance our capabilities and share repurchases.”

The full year 2017 financial guidance assumes:

With respect to 2016, the company confirmed its current guidance, of earnings in the range of $4.60 - $4.80 and revenue in the range of $1,665 - $1,680 million.

ICON will be presenting at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference on January 10th at 8:00am PT (11:00am EST, 4:00pm Ireland & UK). This presentation and follow-on Q&A can be accessed live from the ICON website at http://investor.iconplc.com. A recording will also be available on the website for 90 days following the call.


This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements are based on management's current expectations and information currently available, including current economic and industry conditions. These statements are not guarantees of future performance or actual results, and actual results, developments and business decisions may differ from those stated in this press release. The forward-looking statements are subject to future events, risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the statements, including, but not limited to, the ability to enter into new contracts, maintain client relationships, manage the opening of new offices and offering of new services, the integration of new business mergers and acquisitions, as well as economic and global market conditions and other risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in SEC reports filed by ICON, all of which are difficult to predict and some of which are beyond our control. For these reasons, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements when making investment decisions. The word "expected" and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are only as of the date they are made and we do not undertake any obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statement, either as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. More information about the risks and uncertainties relating to these forward-looking statements may be found in SEC reports filed by ICON, including its Form 20-F, F-1, S-8 and F-3, which are available on the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov.

ICON plc is a global provider of drug development solutions and services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries. The company specialises in the strategic development, management and analysis of programs that support clinical development - from compound selection to Phase I-IV clinical studies. With headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, ICON currently, operates from 88 locations in 37 countries and has approximately 12,600 employees. Further information is available at www.iconplc.com.

ICON/ICLR-F

CONTACT:
ICON
Investor Relations 1-888-381-7923
or
Brendan Brennan
Chief Financial Officer
+ 353 –1-291-2000
or
Simon Holmes
EVP Investor Relations and Corporate Development
+ 353 –1-291-2000