MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. Has $2.42 Million Stock Position in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 23.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,847 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,289 shares during the period. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $2,416,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UTHR. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its position in United Therapeutics by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 2,614 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $922,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in United Therapeutics by 36.6% in the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,463 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,222,000 after acquiring an additional 927 shares in the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in United Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $376,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in United Therapeutics by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,101 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $388,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in United Therapeutics by 31.9% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 240 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $85,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on UTHR shares. Bank of America raised shares of United Therapeutics from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $314.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $425.00 price objective on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $346.00 to $348.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of United Therapeutics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $314.00 price objective (down from $395.00) on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Friday, April 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $392.00.

United Therapeutics Trading Down 0.3%

NASDAQ:UTHR traded down $1.07 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $307.65. 269,594 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 442,590. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.58. United Therapeutics Co. has a twelve month low of $264.33 and a twelve month high of $417.82. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $299.63 and a 200 day moving average of $338.32.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The biotechnology company reported $6.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.29 by $0.34. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 19.22%. The firm had revenue of $794.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $726.82 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.17 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.76, for a total value of $3,607,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 2,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $929,678.52. This represents a 79.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Tommy G. Thompson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $318.80, for a total transaction of $797,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 8,480 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,703,424. This represents a 22.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 55,500 shares of company stock worth $17,054,780. 10.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

United Therapeutics Profile

United Therapeutics Corporation, a biotechnology company, engages in the development and commercialization of products to address the unmet medical needs of patients with chronic and life-threatening diseases in the United States and internationally. The company offers Tyvaso DPI, an inhaled dry powder via pre-filled and single-use cartridges; Tyvaso, an inhaled solution via ultrasonic nebulizer; Remodulin (treprostinil) injection to treat patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) to diminish symptoms associated with exercise; Orenitram, a tablet dosage form of treprostinil, to delay disease progression and improve exercise capacity in PAH patients; and Adcirca, an oral PDE-5 inhibitor to enhance the exercise ability in PAH patients.