JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) Price Target to $687.00

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase raised its price target on United Therapeutics to $687 from $685 and kept an overweight rating, implying about 29.75% upside from the prior close.
• Other analysts were mixed but generally positive: Royal Bank of Canada lifted its target to $704, Bank of America trimmed its target to $613, and the stock now carries a Moderate Buy consensus with an average target of $648.33.
• United Therapeutics shares rose 0.5% to $529.50 on lighter-than-average volume, while the company recently reported Q1 EPS of $5.82, below estimates, and noted significant insider selling over the past 90 days.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $685.00 to $687.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the biotechnology company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 29.75% from the stock's previous close.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on UTHR. Bank of America reduced their price target on United Therapeutics from $620.00 to $613.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on United Therapeutics from $701.00 to $704.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $516.00 target price on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $648.33.

United Therapeutics Trading Up 0.5%

NASDAQ UTHR traded up $2.42 on Thursday, hitting $529.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 111,612 shares, compared to its average volume of 484,545. The firm has a market cap of $22.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.54, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.58. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $549.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $531.18. United Therapeutics has a 52-week low of $272.12 and a 52-week high of $609.35.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The biotechnology company reported $5.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.00 by ($1.18). United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.62% and a return on equity of 19.24%. The company had revenue of $781.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $797.40 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $6.63 EPS. The business's revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that United Therapeutics will post 26.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at United Therapeutics

In related news, Director Jan Malcolm sold 325 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.59, for a total transaction of $178,941.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $247,765.50. The trade was a 41.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 8,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $552.56, for a total transaction of $4,586,248.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 45,172 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,960,240.32. The trade was a 15.52% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 525,743 shares of company stock valued at $293,954,527 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 8.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of United Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UTHR. Leuthold Group LLC lifted its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 41.4% during the 4th quarter. Leuthold Group LLC now owns 10,672 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $5,200,000 after buying an additional 3,126 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG boosted its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 45.3% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 225,849 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $110,045,000 after acquiring an additional 70,445 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd purchased a new position in shares of United Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,059,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in United Therapeutics by 88.6% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 26,960 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $13,136,000 after acquiring an additional 12,663 shares during the period. Finally, Brookstone Capital Management grew its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 25.4% in the 4th quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 6,622 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,227,000 after purchasing an additional 1,342 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.08% of the company's stock.

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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