Van ECK Associates Corp Sells 5,264 Shares of United Therapeutics Corporation $UTHR

Van ECK Associates Corp decreased its position in United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR) by 15.4% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 29,023 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 5,264 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $15,726,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of United Therapeutics during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new stake in United Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new stake in United Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in United Therapeutics by 426.7% in the 1st quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 79 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its stake in United Therapeutics by 125.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 88 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at United Therapeutics

In other United Therapeutics news, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $517.51, for a total transaction of $4,916,345.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 324,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $167,902,496.93. This represents a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 8,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $523.14, for a total transaction of $4,342,062.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 45,172 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,631,280.08. This represents a 15.52% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 414,075 shares of company stock valued at $221,568,985. 8.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of United Therapeutics from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $704.00 to $677.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of United Therapeutics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $575.00 to $735.00 in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $685.00 to $687.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $646.00.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UTHR opened at $510.38 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $529.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $539.42. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 52 week low of $303.08 and a 52 week high of $609.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.89 billion, a PE ratio of 18.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.59.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported $7.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.86 by $0.41. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 41.56%.The firm had revenue of $783.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $804.65 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.41 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 26.33 EPS for the current year.

About United Therapeutics

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.