Vident Advisory LLC Increases Position in United Therapeutics Corporation $UTHR

Key Points

• Vident Advisory LLC increased its position in United Therapeutics by 45.2%, owning a total of 17,741 shares valued at approximately $5.47 million after buying an additional 5,520 shares.
• Several hedge funds, including Evergreen Capital Management LLC with an 806.8% stake increase, have also significantly adjusted their holdings in United Therapeutics, making institutional ownership nearly 94.08%.
• The stock's performance led to varying analyst ratings, with a consensus average price target of $382.00 and several analysts maintaining a "Buy" rating despite recent price adjustments.

Vident Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 45.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,741 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,520 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC's holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $5,469,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 7,744 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $2,732,000 after acquiring an additional 831 shares during the period. Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in United Therapeutics in the fourth quarter worth $630,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 15,560 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $5,490,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 36,114 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $12,742,000 after buying an additional 1,922 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 179,077 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $63,186,000 after buying an additional 11,246 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.08% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UTHR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $295.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $348.00 to $328.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on United Therapeutics from $350.00 to $330.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. HC Wainwright set a $400.00 price target on United Therapeutics and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on United Therapeutics from $314.00 to $463.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, United Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $412.69.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Nilda Mesa sold 645 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.99, for a total value of $187,043.55. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,416,021.17. This represents a 11.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 11,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.96, for a total transaction of $3,079,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 36,781 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,297,208.76. This represents a 23.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 84,681 shares of company stock worth $25,807,469 over the last ninety days. 10.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

United Therapeutics Price Performance

NASDAQ UTHR traded down $13.36 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $391.45. 1,684,537 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 554,475. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 52-week low of $266.98 and a 52-week high of $436.95. The company has a market capitalization of $17.66 billion, a PE ratio of 15.28, a PEG ratio of 4.62 and a beta of 0.62. The firm's 50-day moving average is $301.33 and its 200-day moving average is $305.46.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.80 by ($0.39). The business had revenue of $798.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $802.13 million. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.36% and a return on equity of 18.73%. The firm's revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.85 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 24.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Therapeutics Company 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.