Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 242,594 Shares of United Therapeutics Corporation $UTHR

Vanguard Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR) by 5.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,176,016 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 242,594 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 0.10% of United Therapeutics worth $2,034,764,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of UTHR. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 141.7% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 145 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 18.8% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 443 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $127,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at $277,000. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 77.3% during the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 12,843 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,691,000 after buying an additional 5,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 1,628 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $468,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $575.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on United Therapeutics from $471.00 to $519.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on United Therapeutics from $575.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on United Therapeutics from $587.00 to $643.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $601.50.

United Therapeutics Stock Up 0.3%

NASDAQ UTHR opened at $571.07 on Thursday. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 52 week low of $272.12 and a 52 week high of $607.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.47, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $542.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $496.90.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The biotechnology company reported $7.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.78 by $0.92. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 41.94% and a return on equity of 19.30%. The firm had revenue of $790.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $814.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.19 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 27.97 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $568.81, for a total transaction of $5,403,695.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 40,513 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,044,199.53. This represents a 19.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO James Edgemond sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $568.83, for a total value of $5,688,300.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 18,876 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,737,235.08. This trade represents a 34.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 449,705 shares of company stock valued at $242,707,831 in the last quarter. 10.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

United Therapeutics Company Profile

United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ: UTHR) is a biotechnology company dedicated to the development and commercialization of unique products to address life-threatening illnesses. The company’s primary focus has been on pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), where it has launched several therapies designed to improve functional capacity and quality of life for patients. Its marketed products include continuous infusion treprostinil (Remodulin), inhaled treprostinil (Tyvaso), oral treprostinil (Orenitram) and tadalafil (Adcirca), each tailored to different modes of administration and patient needs.