United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) Price Target Cut to $328.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) had its target price cut by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $348.00 to $328.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "equal weight" rating on the biotechnology company's stock. Morgan Stanley's price target would indicate a potential upside of 10.99% from the stock's previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $405.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of United Therapeutics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $321.00 to $315.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $350.00 to $330.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $314.00 price objective (down previously from $395.00) on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $383.08.

United Therapeutics Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of UTHR stock traded down $4.64 during trading on Thursday, reaching $295.52. 300,699 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 444,703. The company has a market capitalization of $13.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.79, a PEG ratio of 6.46 and a beta of 0.53. The firm's 50-day moving average is $301.04 and its 200 day moving average is $320.03. United Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $266.98 and a 1 year high of $417.82.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The biotechnology company reported $6.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.29 by $0.34. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.44% and a return on equity of 19.33%. The business had revenue of $794.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $726.82 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.17 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that United Therapeutics will post 24.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at United Therapeutics

In related news, Director Raymond Dwek sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.57, for a total transaction of $856,710.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $499,747.50. This trade represents a 63.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.96, for a total transaction of $3,079,560.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 36,781 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,297,208.76. This represents a 23.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 76,681 shares of company stock worth $22,813,739 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 10.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Therapeutics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UTHR. Norges Bank bought a new stake in United Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth $151,764,000. FMR LLC grew its holdings in United Therapeutics by 36.5% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,471,405 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $519,170,000 after acquiring an additional 393,777 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new stake in United Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth $101,354,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in United Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth $83,533,000. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in United Therapeutics by 198.8% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 350,193 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $107,635,000 after acquiring an additional 232,988 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.08% of the company's stock.

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.