| Summary of Significant Accounting Policies | Summary of Significant Accounting Policies The Company IQVIA Holdings Inc. (together with its subsidiaries, the “Company” or “IQVIA”) is a leading global provider of advanced analytics, technology solutions and clinical research services to the life sciences industry. IQVIA creates intelligent connections across all aspects of healthcare through its analytics, transformative technology, big data resources, extensive domain expertise and network of partners. IQVIA Connected Intelligence delivers actionable insights and powerful solutions with speed and agility — enabling customers to accelerate the clinical development and commercialization of innovative medical treatments that improve healthcare outcomes for patients. With approximately 87,000 employees, the Company conducts business in more than 100 countries. IQVIA is a global leader in protecting individual patient privacy. The Company uses a wide variety of privacy-enhancing technologies and safeguards to protect individual privacy while generating and analyzing information on a scale that helps healthcare stakeholders identify disease patterns and correlate with the precise treatment path and therapy needed for better outcomes. IQVIA’s insights and execution capabilities help biotech, medical device and pharmaceutical companies, medical researchers, government agencies, payers and other healthcare stakeholders tap into a deeper understanding of diseases, human behaviors and scientific advances, in an effort to advance their path toward cures. Principles of Consolidation The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts and operations of the Company, its subsidiaries and investments in which the Company has control. Amounts pertaining to the non-controlling ownership interests held by third parties in the operating results and financial position of the Company’s majority-owned subsidiaries are reported as non-controlling interests. Intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities, at the date of the financial statements, as well as the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the period. These estimates are based on historical experience and various other assumptions believed reasonable under the circumstances. The Company evaluates its estimates on an ongoing basis and makes changes to the estimates and related disclosures as experience develops or new information becomes known. Actual results may differ from those estimates. Foreign Currencies The Company’s consolidated financial statements are reported in United States dollars and, accordingly, the Company’s results of operations are impacted by fluctuations in exchange rates that affect the translation of its revenues and expenses denominated in foreign currencies into United States dollars for purposes of reporting its consolidated financial results. Assets and liabilities recorded in foreign currencies on the books of foreign subsidiaries are translated at the exchange rate on the balance sheet date. Revenues, costs and expenses are translated at average rates of exchange during the year. Translation adjustments resulting from this process are charged or credited to the accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income (“AOCI”) component of stockholders’ equity. The Company is subject to foreign currency transaction risk for fluctuations in exchange rates during the period of time between the consummation and cash settlement of a transaction. The Company earns revenues from its service contracts over a period of several months and, in some cases, over a period of several years. Accordingly, exchange rate fluctuations during this period may affect the Company’s profitability with respect to such contracts. For operations outside the United States that are considered to be highly inflationary or where the United States dollar is designated as the functional currency, monetary assets and liabilities are remeasured using end-of-period exchange rates, whereas nonmonetary accounts are remeasured using historical exchange rates, and all remeasurement and transaction adjustments are recognized in other (income) expense, net. Cash Equivalents The Company considers all highly liquid investments with an initial maturity of three months or less when purchased to be cash equivalents. Derivatives The Company uses derivative instruments to manage exposures to interest rates and foreign currencies. Derivatives are recorded on the balance sheet at fair value at each balance sheet date utilizing pricing models for non-exchange-traded contracts. At inception, the Company designates whether or not the derivative instrument is an effective hedge of an asset, liability or firm commitment which is then classified as either a cash flow hedge or a fair value hedge. If determined to be an effective cash flow hedge, changes in the fair value of the derivative instrument are recorded as a component of AOCI until realized. The Company includes the impact from these hedges in the same line item as the hedged item on the consolidated statements of cash flows. Changes in fair value of effective fair value hedges are recorded in earnings as an offset to the changes in the fair value of the related hedged item. Hedge ineffectiveness, if any, is immediately recognized in earnings. Changes in the fair values of derivative instruments that are not an effective hedge are recognized in earnings. When it is probable that a hedged forecasted transaction will not occur, the Company discontinues hedge accounting for the affected portion of the forecasted transaction and reclassifies gains or losses that were accumulated in AOCI to earnings for foreign exchange derivatives and interest expense for interest rate derivatives on the consolidated statements of income. Cash flows are classified consistent with the underlying hedged item. The Company has entered, and may in the future enter, into derivative contracts (caps, swaps, forwards, calls or puts, warrants, for example) related to its debt and forecasted foreign currency transactions. The Company does not enter into derivative instruments for investment or speculative purposes. The Company designates its cross-currency swaps and a portion of its foreign currency denominated debt as a hedge of its net investment in certain foreign subsidiaries to reduce the volatility in stockholders’ equity caused by changes in the Euro exchange rate with respect to the United States dollar. Foreign exchange gains or losses on the remeasurement of the debt designated as part of a hedge of net investments is recognized in the cumulative translation adjustment component of AOCI with the related offset in long-term debt. Those amounts would be reclassified from AOCI to earnings upon the sale or substantial liquidation of the net investments. T he change in fair value of the cross-currency swaps are also recognized in the cumulative translation adjustment component of AOCI and would be reclassified from AOCI to earnings upon the sale or substantial liquidation of the net investments. The interest rate component of the cross-currency swaps is excluded from the assessment of hedge effectiveness and, thus, is recognized as a reduction to interest expense over the life of the cross-currency swaps. Business Combinations and Goodwill The Company uses the acquisition method to account for business combinations, and accordingly, the identifiable assets acquired, the liabilities assumed and any non-controlling interest in the acquiree are recorded at their estimated fair values on the date of the acquisition. The Company uses significant judgments, estimates and assumptions in determining the estimated fair value of assets acquired, liabilities assumed and non-controlling interests including expected future cash flows, and discount rates that reflect the risk associated with the expected future cash flows and estimated useful lives. The Company records and allocates to its reporting units the excess of the cost over the fair value of the net assets acquired, known as goodwill. On an annual basis, and if a triggering event occurs, the Company performs a qualitative analysis to determine whether it is more likely than not that the estimated fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount. This includes a qualitative analysis of macroeconomic conditions, industry and market considerations, cost factors, financial performance, fair value history and other company specific events. If this qualitative analysis indicates that it is more likely than not that the estimated fair value is less than the carrying value for the respective reporting unit, the Company would then need to calculate the fair value of the reporting unit. The Company may also choose to bypass the qualitative assessment for any or all reporting units and proceed directly to a quantitative assessment, which involves estimating the fair value of the Company's reporting units and comparing to the carrying value of the reporting units. If the reporting unit calculated fair value is less than the carrying amount, the Company would record an impairment charge for the difference, with the impairment charge not to exceed the carrying amount of goodwill. The Company reviews the carrying values of other identifiable definite-lived intangible assets if the facts and circumstances indicate a possible impairment. Long-Lived Assets Property and equipment are stated at cost and are depreciated using the straight-line method over the shorter of the asset’s estimated useful life or the lease term, if related to leased property, as follows: Buildings and leasehold improvements 3 - 40 years Equipment 3 - 10 years Furniture and fixtures 5 - 10 years Transportation equipment 3 - 20 years Definite-lived other identifiable intangible assets are amortized primarily using an accelerated method that reflects the pattern in which the Company expects to benefit from the use of the asset over its estimated remaining useful life as follows: Client relationships and backlog 1 - 25 years Software and related assets 1 - 10 years Trademarks, trade names and other 1 - 17 years Databases 1 - 9 years Non-compete agreements 2 - 5 years Included in software and related assets is the capitalized cost of internal-use software used in supporting the Company’s business. Qualifying costs incurred during the application development stage are capitalized and amortized over their estimated useful lives. Costs are capitalized from completion of the preliminary project stage and when it is considered probable that the software will be used to perform its intended function, up until the time the software is placed into service. The Company recognized $475 million, $419 million and $211 million of amortization expense for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively, related to software and related assets. The carrying values of property, equipment and intangible and other long-lived assets are reviewed for recoverability at the asset grouping level to determine if the facts and circumstances suggest that a potential impairment may have occurred. If this review indicates that carrying values will not be recoverable, as determined based on undiscounted cash flow projections, the Company will record an impairment charge to reduce carrying values to estimated fair value. There were no impairments recognized in the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021. Revenue Recognition The Company’s arrangements are primarily service contracts that range in duration from a few months to several years. The Company recognizes revenues when control of these services is transferred to the customer for an amount, referred to as the transaction price, that reflects the consideration to which the Company is expected to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. The Company determines revenue recognition utilizing the following five steps: (1) identification of the contract with a customer, (2) identification of the performance obligations in the contract (promised goods or services that are distinct), (3) determination of the transaction price, (4) allocation of the transaction price to the performance obligations, and (5) recognition of revenues when, or as, the Company transfers control of the product or service for each performance obligation. Cash payments made to customers as incentives to induce customers to enter into service agreements with the Company are amortized as a reduction of revenues over the period the services are performed. The Company records revenues net of any tax assessments by governmental authorities, such as value added taxes, that are imposed on and concurrent with specific revenues generating transactions. The Company derives the majority of its revenues in the Technology & Analytics Solutions segment from various information and technology service offerings. Information offerings (primarily under fixed-price contracts) typically include multiple performance obligations including an ongoing subscription-based deliverable for which revenues are recognized ratably as earned over the contract period, and/or a one-time deliverable of data offerings for which revenues are recognized upon delivery. The customer is able to benefit from the provision of data as it is received. The Company’s subscription arrangements typically have terms ranging from one The majority of the Company’s contracts within the Research & Development Solutions segment are service contracts for clinical research that represent a single performance obligation. The Company provides a significant integration service resulting in a combined output, which is clinical trial data that meets the relevant regulatory standards and can be used by the customer to progress to the next phase of a clinical trial or solicit approval of a treatment by the applicable regulatory body. The performance obligation is satisfied over time as the output is captured in data and documentation that is available for the customer to consume over the course of the arrangement and furthers progress of the clinical trial. The Company recognizes revenues over time using a cost-based input method since there is no single output measure that would fairly depict the transfer of control over the life of the performance obligation. Progress on the performance obligation is measured by the proportion of actual costs incurred to the total costs expected to complete the contract. Costs included in the measure of progress include direct labor and third-party costs (such as payments to investigators and other reimbursed expenses for the Company’s clinical monitors). This cost-based method of revenue recognition requires the Company to make estimates of costs to complete its projects on an ongoing basis. Significant judgment is required to evaluate assumptions related to these estimates. The effect of revisions to estimates related to the transaction price or costs to complete a project are recorded in the period in which the estimate is revised. Most contracts may be terminated upon 30 to 90 days' notice by the customer; however, in the event of termination, most contracts require payment for services rendered through the date of termination, as well as for subsequent services rendered to close out the contract. The majority of revenues in the Company's Contract Sales & Medical Solutions segment is from contract salesforce to the biopharmaceutical industry and broader healthcare market and recognized over time using a single measure of progress dependent on the performance obligation. Some of the Company's Contract Sales & Medical Solutions contracts contain multiple performance obligations with distinct promises including recruiting, sales force automation and deployment of sales representatives. The Company utilizes a single measure of progress for each performance obligation to recognize revenues, which includes deployment of sales representatives based on employee days worked; recruiting based on candidates recruited; sales force automation set-up based on hours worked; and sales force automation hosting and maintenance based on usage. These services meet the over time criterion as the customer consumes the benefit as activities are performed and another party would not need to substantially re-perform the work already completed to satisfy the remaining obligations if the services were migrated to another party. Variable Consideration In some cases, contracts provide for variable consideration that is contingent upon the occurrence of uncertain future events, such as performance incentives (including royalty payments, bonuses, or penalty clauses that can either increase or decrease the transaction price). Variable consideration is estimated at the expected value or at the most likely amount depending on the type of consideration. Estimated amounts are included in the transaction price to the extent it is probable that a significant reversal of cumulative revenues recognized will not occur when the uncertainty associated with the variable consideration is resolved. The estimate of variable consideration and determination of whether to include estimated amounts in the transaction price are based largely on an assessment of the Company's anticipated performance and all information (historical, current and forecasted) that is reasonably available to the Company and reevaluated each reporting period. Reimbursed Expenses The Company includes reimbursed expenses in revenues and cost of revenues as the Company is primarily responsible for fulfilling the promise to provide the specified service, including the integration of the related services into a combined output to the customer, which are inseparable from the integrated service. These costs include such items as payments to investigators and travel expenses for the Company’s clinical monitors and sales representatives, over which the Company has discretion in establishing prices. The Company controls the good or service and has inventory risk on contractually reimbursable expenses, as sometimes the Company is unable to obtain reimbursement from the customer for costs incurred. Change Orders Changes in the scope of work are common, especially under long-term contracts, and generally result in a change in transaction price. Change orders are evaluated on a contract-by-contract basis to determine if they should be accounted for as a new contract or as part of the existing contract. Generally, services from change orders are not distinct from the original performance obligation. As a result, the effect that the contract modification has on the contract revenues, and measure of progress, is recognized as an adjustment to revenues when it occurs. Cost of Revenues Cost of revenues include (i) compensation and benefits for billable employees and personnel involved in production, data management and delivery, and the costs of acquiring and processing data for the Company’s information offerings; (ii) costs of staff directly involved with delivering technology-related services offerings and engagements, and the costs of data purchased specifically for technology services engagements; (iii) reimbursed expenses that are comprised principally of payments to investigators who oversee clinical trials and travel expenses for the Company’s clinical monitors and sales representatives; and (iv) other expenses directly related to service contracts such as courier fees, laboratory supplies, professional services and travel expenses. Trade Receivables, Unbilled Services and Unearned Income In general, billings and payments are established by contractual provisions including predetermined payment schedules, which may or may not correspond to the timing of the transfer of control of the Company’s services under the contract. In general, the Company’s intention in its invoicing (payment terms) is to maintain cash neutrality over the life of the contract. Generally, the payment terms are 30 to 90 days based on contracts. Upfront payments, when they occur, are intended to cover certain expenses the Company incurs at the beginning of the contract. Neither the Company nor its customers view such upfront payments and contracted payment schedules as a means of financing. Unbilled services primarily arise from long-term contracts when a cost-based or hours-based input method of revenue recognition is utilized and revenues recognized exceeds the amount billed to the customer. Unearned income consists of advance payments and billings in excess of revenues recognized. As the contracted services are subsequently performed and the associated revenues are recognized, the unearned income balance is reduced by the amount of the revenue recognized during the period. Unearned income is classified as a current liability on our consolidated balance sheets as the Company expects to recognize the associated revenues in less than one year. Restructuring Costs Restructuring costs, which primarily include termination benefits, are recorded at estimated value. Key assumptions in determining the restructuring costs include the terms and payments that may be negotiated to terminate certain contractual obligations and the timing of employees leaving the Company. Debt Fees Fees incurred to issue debt are generally deferred and amortized as a component of interest expense over the estimated term of the related debt using the effective interest rate method. Contingencies The Company records accruals for claims, suits, investigations and proceedings when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. The Company reviews claims, suits, investigations and proceedings at least quarterly and records or adjusts accruals related to such matters to reflect the impact and status of any settlements, rulings, advice of counsel or other information pertinent to a particular matter. Legal costs associated with contingencies are charged to expense as incurred. The Company is party to legal proceedings incidental to its business. While the outcome of these matters could differ from management’s expectations, the Company does not believe the resolution of these matters will have a material adverse effect to the Company’s financial statements. See Note 12 for additional information. Income Taxes The provision for income taxes includes federal, state, local and foreign taxes. Income taxes are accounted for under the asset and liability method. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences of temporary differences between the financial statement carrying amounts and their respective tax bases. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the year in which the temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The Company records U.S. deferred taxes based on the Federal corporate income tax rate of 21%. The Company accounts for tax related to Global Intangible Low-Taxed Income (“GILTI”) as a period cost when incurred. Recognition of deferred income tax assets is based on management’s belief that it is more likely than not that the income tax benefit associated with certain temporary differences, income tax operating loss, capital loss carryforwards, and income tax credits, will be realized. The Company records a valuation allowance to reduce its deferred income tax assets for those deferred income tax items for which it was more likely than not that realization would not occur. The Company determines the amount of the valuation allowance based, in part, on the Company’s assessment of future taxable income and in light of the Company’s ongoing income tax strategies. If the estimate of future taxable income or tax strategies changes at any time in the future, the Company would record an adjustment to its valuation allowance. Recording such an adjustment could have a material effect on the Company’s financial condition or results of operations. Income tax expense is based on the distribution of profit before income tax among the various taxing jurisdictions in which the Company operates, adjusted as required by the income tax laws of each taxing jurisdiction. Changes in the distribution of profits and losses among taxing jurisdictions may have a significant impact on the Company's effective income tax rate. The Company does not consider the undistributed earnings of our foreign subsidiaries to be indefinitely reinvested outside of the United States. Pensions and Other Postretirement Benefits The Company provides retirement benefits to certain employees, including defined benefit pension plans. The determination of benefit obligations and expense is based on actuarial models. In order to measure benefit costs and obligations using these models, assumptions are made with regard to the discount rate, expected return on plan assets, cash balance crediting rate, lump sum conversion rate and the assumed rate of compensation increases. Stock-based Compensation The Company accounts for stock-based compensation for stock options and stock appreciation rights under the fair value method and uses the Black-Scholes-Merton model to estimate the value of such stock-based awards granted to its employees and non-executive directors. Expected volatility is based on an analysis that incorporates the historical volatility of the Company's stock since the Merger in October 2016 and reported data for selected reasonably similar publicly traded companies for which the historical information is available. The Company does not currently anticipate paying dividends. The expected term represents the period of time the grants are expected to be outstanding. The risk-free interest rate is based on the United States Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of the grant. The Company values its stock-based compensation for restricted stock awards and restricted stock units based on the closing market price of the Company’s common stock on the date of grant. The Company accounts for its stock-based compensation for performance awards related to compound annual earnings per share (“EPS”) growth based on the closing market price of the Company’s common stock on the date of grant, and for performance awards related to relative total shareholder return (“TSR”) based on a Monte Carlo simulation model. Leases The Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception and reassesses if there are changes in terms and conditions of the contract. Operating leases are included in operating lease right-of-use (“ROU”) assets, other current liabilities, and operating lease liabilities on our consolidated balance sheets. Finance leases are included in deposits and other assets, net, other current liabilities, and other liabilities on the Company's consolidated balance sheets. Lease assets and liabilities are recognized based on the present value of the future minimum lease payments over the lease term at commencement date. As most of the Company’s leases do not provide an implicit rate, the Company uses its incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at commencement date in determining the present value of future payments. Lease assets also include any lease payments made before lease commencement and initial direct costs and excludes lease incentives. In determining the lease term at lease commencement, the Company includes the noncancellable term and the periods, which the Company deems it is reasonably certain to exercise or not to exercise a renewal or cancellation option. Operating lease expense for minimum lease payments is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. Finance lease expense is recognized as a combination of depreciation expense for the leased asset and interest expense for the outstanding lease liabilities using the discount rate discussed above. The Company has lease agreements with lease and non-lease components that the Company has elected to account for as single lease components. Earnings Per Share The calculation of earnings per share is based on the weighted average number of common shares or common stock equivalents outstanding during the applicable period. The dilutive effect of common stock equivalents is excluded from basic earnings per share and is included in the calculation of diluted earnings per share. Potentially dilutive securities include outstanding stock options and unvested restricted stock units, restricted stock, performance awards and other stock-based awards. Diluted shares outstanding are calculated based on the average share price for each fiscal period using the treasury stock method. Under the treasury stock method, the amount the employee must pay for exercising stock options, and the amount of compensation cost for future service that the Company has not yet recognized are assumed to be used to repurchase shares. Investments in Unconsolidated Affiliates The Company’s investments in unconsolidated affiliates are accounted for under the equity method if the Company exercises significant influence or has an investment in a limited partnership that is considered to be greater than minor. These investments are classified as investments in unconsolidated affiliates on the accompanying consolidated balance sheets. The Company records its pro rata share of the earnings, adjusted for accretion of basis difference, of these investments in equity in (losses) earnings of unconsolidated affiliates on the accompanying consolidated statements of income. The Company reviews its investments in unconsolidated affiliates for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amounts may not be recoverable. Treasury Stock The Company records treasury stock purchases under the cost method. Upon reissuance of treasury stock, amounts in excess of the acquisition cost are credited to additional paid-in capital. If the Company reissues treasury stock at an amount below its acquisition cost and additional paid-in capital associated with prior treasury stock transactions is insufficient to cover the difference between the acquisition cost and the reissue price, this shortfall is recorded in retained earnings. Recently Issued Accounting Standards Accounting pronouncements recently adopted In September 2022, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued new accounting guidance, Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2022-04, Liabilities - Supplier Finance Programs , to enhance the transparency of supplier finance programs. The amendments in this ASU address investor and other financial statement user requests for additional information about the use of supplier finance programs by the buyer party to understand the effect of those programs on a Company's working capital, liquidity, and cash flows. The Company adopted this new accounting guidance effective January 1, 2023. The adoption of this new accounting guidance did not have a material effect on the Company's disclosures within the consolidated financial statements. Accounting pronouncements issued but not adopted as of December 31, 2023 In November 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-07, Segment Reporting (Topic 280): Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures , to improve reportable segment disclosure requirements. The new guidance requires disclosure of significant segment expenses that are regularly provided to the chief operating decision maker and included in the reported measure of segment profit or loss. It does not change the definition of a segment or the guidance for determining reportable segments. The new guidance will be effective for the Company in the annual period beginning January 1, 2024 and in 2025 for interim periods. The Company is assessing the impacts of this ASU on its disclosures within the consolidated financial statements. In December 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-09, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures , to enhance the transparency and decision usefulness of income tax disclosures. The amendments in this ASU require additional disclosures about income taxes, primarily focused on the disclosure of income taxes paid and the rate reconciliation table. The new guidance will be effective for the Company in the annual period beginning January 1, 2025. The Company |
