United Therapeutics Corporation $UTHR Shares Purchased by Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky

Key Points

• Teachers Retirement System of the State of Kentucky raised its United Therapeutics stake 120.6% to 30,864 shares, worth about $15.04 million and representing roughly 0.07% of the company.
• Insiders have been net sellers: CFO James Edgemond and EVP Paul Mahon both sold shares, and insiders disposed of 420,705 shares totaling $226.25 million this quarter; insiders now own 10.3% of the stock.
• Analysts are largely positive — 10 Buy ratings vs. 3 Hold ratings produce a "Moderate Buy" consensus with a $601.50 price target, and several firms recently lifted targets into the $660–$705 range.

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky boosted its position in shares of United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 120.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,864 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 16,872 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky owned approximately 0.07% of United Therapeutics worth $15,039,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Global Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $317,617,000. Baillie Gifford & Co. purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $157,390,000. Soleus Capital Management L.P. lifted its holdings in United Therapeutics by 35.0% in the second quarter. Soleus Capital Management L.P. now owns 209,794 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $60,284,000 after acquiring an additional 54,400 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in United Therapeutics by 0.6% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 199,656 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $83,698,000 after acquiring an additional 1,137 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG grew its position in United Therapeutics by 49.3% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 155,404 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $65,147,000 after acquiring an additional 51,290 shares during the period. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at United Therapeutics

In other United Therapeutics news, CFO James Edgemond sold 9,636 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.21, for a total value of $5,513,815.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,876 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,801,035.96. The trade was a 33.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 8,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $576.82, for a total transaction of $4,787,606.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 45,172 shares in the company, valued at $26,056,113.04. This trade represents a 15.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 420,705 shares of company stock worth $226,250,141 over the last quarter. 10.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on UTHR shares. UBS Group raised their target price on United Therapeutics from $655.00 to $705.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. TD Cowen upped their price target on United Therapeutics from $575.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on United Therapeutics in a report on Friday, April 10th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $700.00 price target for the company. HC Wainwright boosted their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $569.00 to $626.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $601.50.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

United Therapeutics stock opened at $567.16 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $24.86 billion, a PE ratio of 20.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.75. United Therapeutics Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $272.12 and a fifty-two week high of $607.89. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $536.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $494.61.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The biotechnology company reported $7.70 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.78 by $0.92. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 19.30% and a net margin of 41.94%.The company had revenue of $790.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $814.80 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.19 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 27.97 earnings per share for the current 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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