Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Sells 94,977 Shares of United Therapeutics Corporation $UTHR

Key Points

• Clark Capital Management Group Inc. reduced its stake in United Therapeutics by 50.2%, now holding 94,364 shares valued at approximately $29 million.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed views on United Therapeutics, with price targets ranging from $328.00 to $560.00, and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."
• United Therapeutics reported a quarterly earnings miss, with an EPS of $6.41, below the consensus estimate of $6.80, despite a revenue increase of 11.7% year-over-year.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. reduced its position in United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 50.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 94,364 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 94,977 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. owned 0.21% of United Therapeutics worth $29,090,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its stake in United Therapeutics by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 100 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics during the first quarter worth $32,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics during the first quarter worth $49,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth $62,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 103.2% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 193 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

United Therapeutics Price Performance

United Therapeutics stock traded down $5.90 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $394.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 623,780 shares, compared to its average volume of 865,507. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $307.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $305.37. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 12 month low of $266.98 and a 12 month high of $436.95. The stock has a market cap of $17.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.11 and a beta of 0.62.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported $6.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.80 by ($0.39). United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.36% and a return on equity of 18.73%. The company had revenue of $798.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $802.13 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.85 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 24.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on UTHR. HC Wainwright increased their target price on United Therapeutics from $400.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $295.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on United Therapeutics from $350.00 to $330.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on United Therapeutics from $415.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $429.62.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 11,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $385.21, for a total value of $4,237,310.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 36,781 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,168,409.01. This trade represents a 23.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 22,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.64, for a total value of $9,396,900.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 106,181 shares of company stock valued at $35,537,239 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 10.30% of the company's stock.

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.