Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Buys Shares of 12,500 United Therapeutics Corporation $UTHR

Key Points

• Louisiana State Employees Retirement System opened a new position in United Therapeutics, buying 12,500 shares valued at about $7.4 million in the first quarter.
• Several insiders sold stock recently, including EVP Paul A. Mahon and CEO Martine A. Rothblatt, while insiders collectively sold 643,218 shares worth about $363.7 million in the last quarter.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on UTHR, with 11 Buy ratings and 2 Hold ratings, though the stock was down 1.2% and the company recently reported earnings and revenue that missed expectations.

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 12,500 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $7,412,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of UTHR. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in United Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Activest Wealth Management raised its holdings in United Therapeutics by 1,400.0% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 60 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. WealthCollab LLC raised its holdings in United Therapeutics by 55.9% in the 2nd quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 106 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 76.7% during the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 106 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other United Therapeutics news, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 8,300 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $541.55, for a total transaction of $4,494,865.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 45,172 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,462,896.60. The trade was a 15.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $548.69, for a total transaction of $5,212,555.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 40,513 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,229,077.97. This represents a 19.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 643,218 shares of company stock valued at $363,705,304. 8.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on UTHR. Raymond James Financial began coverage on United Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, April 10th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $700.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group raised their price target on United Therapeutics from $655.00 to $705.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of United Therapeutics from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $575.00 to $735.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Therapeutics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $619.42.

United Therapeutics Stock Down 1.2%

UTHR stock opened at $543.39 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $23.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.06, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.57. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $561.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $525.46. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 52 week low of $272.12 and a 52 week high of $609.35.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The biotechnology company reported $5.82 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.00 by ($1.18). The firm had revenue of $781.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $797.40 million. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 40.62%.The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $6.63 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 26.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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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