Insider Selling: United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) CEO Sells $4,523,615.00 in Stock

Key Points

• CEO insider sale: United Therapeutics CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares for approximately $4.52 million at an average price of $476.17, reducing her direct ownership by 2.84%.
• Stock and financial performance: UTHR shares rose 2.1% to $485.54, while the company’s latest quarterly EPS of $7.27 exceeded estimates, although revenue fell 1.9% year over year and missed expectations.
• Analyst outlook remains positive: The stock has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating from analysts, with an average price target of $621, while institutional investors own 94.08% of outstanding shares.

United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $476.17, for a total transaction of $4,523,615.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 324,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $154,490,023.31. This trade represents a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

United Therapeutics Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:UTHR traded up $10.09 during trading on Monday, reaching $485.54. The company's stock had a trading volume of 602,466 shares, compared to its average volume of 517,539. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 12 month low of $409.07 and a 12 month high of $609.35. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $510.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $540.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.82 billion, a PE ratio of 17.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.56.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported $7.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.86 by $0.41. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 41.56% and a return on equity of 20.18%. The company had revenue of $783.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $804.65 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $6.41 earnings per share. United Therapeutics's quarterly revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 26.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UTHR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America cut their price target on United Therapeutics from $620.00 to $613.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of United Therapeutics from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $515.00 price target on United Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $704.00 to $677.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on United Therapeutics from $685.00 to $687.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $621.00.

Institutional Trading of United Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Callan Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Therapeutics during the second quarter worth $1,217,000. Nicholas Investment Partners LP grew its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 478.5% in the fourth quarter. Nicholas Investment Partners LP now owns 4,553 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,218,000 after purchasing an additional 3,766 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in United Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,359,000. Havemeyer Place LP acquired a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at $2,189,000. Finally, Seven Fleet Capital Management LP acquired a new position in United Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth $633,000. 94.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Therapeutics Company Profile

United Therapeutics Corporation is a biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for serious and life-threatening conditions, with a primary emphasis on pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). The company's products are designed to improve pulmonary blood flow and reduce the effects of this progressive disease.

United Therapeutics' PAH portfolio includes Remodulin (treprostinil) injection, Orenitram (treprostinil) extended-release tablets, and Tyvaso (treprostinil), which is available as an inhalation solution and as the Tyvaso DPI dry-powder inhaler.

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