Hsbc Holdings PLC Decreases Stock Holdings in United Therapeutics Corporation $UTHR

Key Points

• HSBC Holdings PLC reduced its stake in United Therapeutics by 17% in Q1, selling 24,389 shares and ending with 119,235 shares valued at about $70.6 million.
• United Therapeutics reported Q1 earnings of $5.82 per share, missing analyst expectations of $7.00, while revenue came in at $781.5 million, also below forecasts and down 1.6% year over year.
• Insiders have been active sellers: CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares in July, and analysts remain cautiously positive overall, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $644.82.

Hsbc Holdings PLC lowered its stake in shares of United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 17.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 119,235 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 24,389 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned about 0.27% of United Therapeutics worth $70,617,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UTHR. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in United Therapeutics by 74.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,441,492 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,189,617,000 after purchasing an additional 1,042,711 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of United Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $293,418,000. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,606,060 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,269,803,000 after buying an additional 383,838 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 75.1% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 796,101 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $387,801,000 after acquiring an additional 341,383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. bought a new position in shares of United Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $157,390,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.08% of the company's stock.

United Therapeutics Price Performance

UTHR stock opened at $535.67 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.74 billion, a PE ratio of 19.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.58. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 52 week low of $272.12 and a 52 week high of $609.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $552.38 and a 200 day moving average of $530.33.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The biotechnology company reported $5.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.00 by ($1.18). The company had revenue of $781.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $797.40 million. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.62% and a return on equity of 19.24%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.63 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 26.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other United Therapeutics news, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $535.99, for a total transaction of $5,091,905.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 40,513 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,714,562.87. The trade was a 19.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Jan Malcolm sold 325 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.59, for a total value of $178,941.75. Following the sale, the director owned 450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $247,765.50. The trade was a 41.94% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 545,243 shares of company stock valued at $305,155,272 over the last ninety days. 8.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on UTHR. Raymond James Financial began coverage on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, April 10th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $700.00 target price for the company. Bank of America reduced their price target on United Therapeutics from $620.00 to $613.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 10th. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on United Therapeutics from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised United Therapeutics from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $575.00 to $735.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Ten 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.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $644.82.

United Therapeutics 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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