Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Sells 1,090 Shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio cut its position in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 6.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,291 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 1,090 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $5,748,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in United Therapeutics by 23.2% during the 4th quarter. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,847 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,416,000 after acquiring an additional 1,289 shares during the period. CSS LLC IL raised its holdings in United Therapeutics by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. CSS LLC IL now owns 2,327 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $821,000 after acquiring an additional 280 shares during the period. Krensavage Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in United Therapeutics by 49.7% during the 4th quarter. Krensavage Asset Management LLC now owns 150,205 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $52,998,000 after acquiring an additional 49,873 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in United Therapeutics by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 232,373 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $81,990,000 after acquiring an additional 19,716 shares during the period. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in United Therapeutics by 47.8% during the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 6,864 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,422,000 after acquiring an additional 2,221 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.08% of the company's stock.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of UTHR traded down $4.03 on Friday, hitting $316.34. 886,326 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 443,403. The company has a market capitalization of $14.27 billion, a PE ratio of 13.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.58. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $299.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $335.31. United Therapeutics Co. has a one year low of $266.98 and a one year high of $417.82.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The biotechnology company reported $6.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.29 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $794.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $726.82 million. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 19.22%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.17 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Raymond Dwek sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.55, for a total transaction of $1,138,200.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $497,962.50. This represents a 69.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.78, for a total transaction of $3,121,580.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 36,781 shares in the company, valued at $10,437,712.18. This trade represents a 23.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 56,500 shares of company stock valued at $16,923,950. Company insiders own 10.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on UTHR shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of United Therapeutics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $346.00 to $348.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $314.00 target price (down from $395.00) on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Bank of America upgraded shares of United Therapeutics from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $314.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $355.00 to $350.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $392.00.

About United Therapeutics

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.