Vontobel Holding Ltd. Increases Holdings in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its position in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 193.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,643 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 3,723 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $1,241,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UTHR. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in United Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in United Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in United Therapeutics by 49.6% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 196 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. purchased a new stake in United Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in United Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at approximately $87,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.08% of the company's stock.

United Therapeutics Trading Up 0.4 %

NASDAQ:UTHR traded up $1.00 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $237.93. The company had a trading volume of 616,033 shares, compared to its average volume of 504,615. The company has a current ratio of 4.41, a quick ratio of 4.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a 50-day moving average of $231.71 and a 200 day moving average of $228.64. The company has a market cap of $11.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.99 and a beta of 0.52. United Therapeutics Co. has a 1 year low of $204.44 and a 1 year high of $261.54.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The biotechnology company reported $4.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.28 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $614.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $575.01 million. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 17.72% and a net margin of 42.31%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 25.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.67 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that United Therapeutics Co. will post 23.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on UTHR. StockNews.com downgraded United Therapeutics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. SVB Leerink began coverage on United Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, February 5th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $330.00 target price for the company. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised United Therapeutics from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $213.00 to $215.00 in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on United Therapeutics from $309.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Therapeutics presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $292.67.

Insider Transactions at United Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.91, for a total transaction of $856,476.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,928.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.91, for a total transaction of $856,476.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 130 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,928.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.59, for a total value of $3,548,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,756.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 129,790 shares of company stock worth $30,528,633. 12.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

United Therapeutics 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.