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

Key Points

• CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 9,500 United Therapeutics shares at an average price of $532.24, generating approximately $5.06 million. Her remaining stake totals 324,443 shares, worth about $172.7 million.
• United Therapeutics shares traded down 0.3% to $526.50, while the company’s latest quarterly results fell short of expectations: EPS was $5.82 versus the $7.00 consensus, and revenue declined 1.6% year over year to $781.5 million.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $648.33; institutional investors own approximately 94.08% of the stock.

United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.24, for a total transaction of $5,056,280.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 324,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $172,681,542.32. The trade was a 2.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

United Therapeutics Trading Down 0.3%

NASDAQ:UTHR traded down $1.44 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $526.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 62,992 shares, compared to its average volume of 480,858. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 52-week low of $272.12 and a 52-week high of $609.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.58. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $547.10 and a 200-day moving average of $531.86.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The biotechnology company reported $5.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.00 by ($1.18). United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 40.62%.The business had revenue of $781.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $797.40 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $6.63 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 26.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of UTHR. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in United Therapeutics by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 13,120 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $7,109,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares during the period. PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab increased its stake in United Therapeutics by 7.4% in the second quarter. PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab now owns 11,058 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $5,992,000 after purchasing an additional 760 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in United Therapeutics by 79.2% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 84,538 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $45,805,000 after purchasing an additional 37,355 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 10.3% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,769 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $958,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 93.6% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 182 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on UTHR shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $701.00 to $704.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of United Therapeutics from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $575.00 to $735.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $516.00 price target on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $620.00 to $613.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Therapeutics has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $648.33.

United Therapeutics Company Profile

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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