Martine Rothblatt Sells 9,500 Shares of United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) Stock

Key Points

• CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 9,500 United Therapeutics shares at an average price of $489.20, generating $4.65 million. Her remaining stake is valued at approximately $158.7 million.
• United Therapeutics shares rose 2.1% to $497.97, while the company’s latest quarterly earnings of $7.27 per share exceeded analyst expectations, although revenue declined 1.9% year over year.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, with 11 Buy ratings and two Holds and an average price target of $646. Institutional investors own 94.08% of the company.

United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.20, for a total transaction of $4,647,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 324,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at $158,717,515.60. This trade represents a 2.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

United Therapeutics Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ UTHR traded up $10.36 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $497.97. 618,564 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 493,995. The stock has a market cap of $21.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.82, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.56. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 1 year low of $392.17 and a 1 year high of $609.35. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $524.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $540.05.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $6.86 by $0.41. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 41.56%.The firm had revenue of $783.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $804.65 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $6.41 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 26.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on UTHR shares. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $620.00 to $613.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $685.00 to $687.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings cut 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 report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Therapeutics currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $646.00.

Institutional Trading of United Therapeutics

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Arjuna Capital lifted its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 2.8% during the first quarter. Arjuna Capital now owns 662 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 5.1% in the first quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC now owns 474 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $281,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC now owns 465 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $276,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in United Therapeutics by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 661 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $392,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its position in United Therapeutics by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 833 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $406,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About United Therapeutics

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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