Insider Selling: United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) CEO Sells 4,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Martine Rothblatt, CEO of United Therapeutics, sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock for approximately $1.8 million, significantly reducing their ownership stake by 96.85% to just 130 shares.
• The company's stock traded up to $453.28 per share, and its 50-day moving average is significantly lower at $356.31, indicating potential for price movement.
• United Therapeutics has a market capitalization of $20.45 billion and reported a quarterly revenue of $798.60 million, slightly below analysts' expectations, along with an EPS of $6.41.

United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $449.69, for a total transaction of $1,798,760.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 130 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $58,459.70. The trade was a 96.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:UTHR traded up $0.21 on Monday, hitting $453.28. 692,585 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 594,924. The firm's 50-day moving average is $356.31 and its 200 day moving average is $319.05. The company has a market capitalization of $20.45 billion, a PE ratio of 17.69, a P/E/G ratio of 6.91 and a beta of 0.66. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 1-year low of $266.98 and a 1-year high of $455.26.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Therapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $136,453,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 90.2% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 884,703 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $254,219,000 after purchasing an additional 419,588 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 40.1% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,273,161 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $362,876,000 after purchasing an additional 364,713 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at about $101,354,000. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $83,533,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.08% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on UTHR shares. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $405.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $350.00 to $330.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on United Therapeutics from $510.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. HC Wainwright upped their target price on United Therapeutics from $400.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on United Therapeutics from $560.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $449.57.

About United Therapeutics

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.

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