TD Cowen Issues Positive Forecast for United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) Stock Price

Key Points

• TD Cowen raised its price target on United Therapeutics to $700 from $675 and maintained a Buy rating, implying 24.08% upside from the prior close. Analysts’ consensus rating is Moderate Buy, with an average target of $676.40.
• Third-quarter revenue rose 4.1% year over year to $832.5 million, exceeding expectations, but earnings of $5.71 per share missed consensus and declined from $7.16 a year earlier. Shares fell 7.3% on Thursday.
• The company authorized a $2 billion share repurchase plan, allowing it to buy back up to 8.3% of its outstanding shares.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by research analysts at TD Cowen from $675.00 to $700.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "buy" rating on the biotechnology company's stock. TD Cowen's price target would suggest a potential upside of 24.08% from the company's previous close.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on UTHR. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $697.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group set a $725.00 target price on United Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on United Therapeutics from $700.00 to $703.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "sell" rating and set a $368.00 price target on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $850.00 price objective on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $676.40.

United Therapeutics Trading Down 7.3%

UTHR stock traded down $44.35 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $564.14. 376,213 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 556,333. United Therapeutics has a 52-week low of $444.04 and a 52-week high of $614.23. The company has a market cap of $24.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.19, a P/E/G ratio of 4.35 and a beta of 0.49. The stock's fifty day moving average is $532.33 and its 200-day moving average is $532.45.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The biotechnology company reported $5.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.01 by ($0.30). United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 41.56%. The firm had revenue of $832.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $781.14 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $7.16 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that United Therapeutics will post 26.09 earnings per share for the current year.

United Therapeutics announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, October 22nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $2 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the biotechnology company to purchase up to 8.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Share buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at United Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $526.96, for a total value of $5,006,120.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 324,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $170,968,483.28. This represents a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 393,228 shares of company stock worth $207,340,321. Insiders own 8.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Arjuna Capital raised its position in United Therapeutics by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Arjuna Capital now owns 662 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in United Therapeutics by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 396 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $215,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC boosted its position in United Therapeutics by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC now owns 465 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $276,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,154 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $625,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 661 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.08% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about United Therapeutics

Here are the key news stories impacting United Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada raised its price target to $725 from $697 and maintained an “outperform” rating, implying substantial upside from the price cited in the report. Tickerreport article
• Positive Sentiment: BTIG maintained its “buy” rating and lifted its target to $768 from $728, citing strong Tyvaso momentum. TipRanks article
• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue was $832.5 million, up 4.1% year over year and above analyst expectations of about $781 million. The company also announced a buydown of a royalty tied to ralinepag. Quarterly results Royalty buydown announcement
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted earnings were $5.71 per share, missing consensus estimates and falling from $7.16 a year earlier. The earnings shortfall and year-over-year decline temper the positive revenue growth. Zacks earnings report

About United Therapeutics

United Therapeutics Corporation is a biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for patients with life-threatening conditions, particularly pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). The company's portfolio includes Tyvaso and Tyvaso DPI, inhaled formulations of treprostinil; Remodulin, an injectable treprostinil product; and Orenitram, an oral treprostinil therapy. These treatments are designed to improve exercise ability and delay disease progression in people with PAH.

The company also markets Unituxin, an antibody therapy used as part of treatment for high-risk neuroblastoma, a type of childhood cancer.

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