Chase Investment Counsel Corp Buys New Position in United Therapeutics Corporation $UTHR

Key Points

• Chase Investment Counsel bought a new 4,000-share position in United Therapeutics worth approximately $2.17 million. Institutional investors collectively own 94.08% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a favorable outlook, with 11 Buy ratings and two Holds, producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $646.
• United Therapeutics exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $7.27 versus the $6.86 estimate, although revenue of $783.3 million fell short of forecasts and declined 1.9% year over year. Insiders have sold $241.5 million of stock over the past three months.

Chase Investment Counsel Corp bought a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 4,000 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $2,167,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted 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 worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in United Therapeutics by 18.8% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 443 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in United Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at about $277,000. Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in United Therapeutics by 77.3% during the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 12,843 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,691,000 after purchasing an additional 5,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its stake in United Therapeutics by 6.9% during the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 1,628 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $468,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.08% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley set a $515.00 price objective on United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings raised United Therapeutics from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded United Therapeutics from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $575.00 to $735.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on United Therapeutics from $685.00 to $687.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $620.00 to $613.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, United Therapeutics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $646.00.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

NASDAQ UTHR opened at $499.73 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $21.43 billion, a PE ratio of 17.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.59. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 1-year low of $302.19 and a 1-year high of $609.35. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $535.95 and a 200-day moving average of $536.15.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 8,300 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $517.05, for a total value of $4,291,515.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 45,172 shares of the company's stock, valued at $23,356,182.60. The trade was a 15.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $515.03, for a total transaction of $4,892,785.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 324,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at $167,097,878.29. This represents a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 443,075 shares of company stock valued at $241,508,744. Insiders own 8.60% of the company's stock.

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.

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