United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) Coverage Initiated at Cantor Fitzgerald

Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) in a research note issued on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage set an "overweight" rating and a $405.00 price target on the biotechnology company's stock. Cantor Fitzgerald's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 24.92% from the company's previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on UTHR. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on United Therapeutics from $355.00 to $350.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $314.00 target price (down previously from $395.00) on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Bank of America raised United Therapeutics from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $314.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded United Therapeutics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $393.00.

United Therapeutics Price Performance

UTHR stock traded down $1.28 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $324.20. The stock had a trading volume of 441,670 shares, compared to its average volume of 440,468. The firm has a market cap of $14.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.58. The business has a 50-day moving average of $299.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $334.24. United Therapeutics has a 52-week low of $266.98 and a 52-week high of $417.82.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The biotechnology company reported $6.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.29 by $0.34. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 19.22% and a net margin of 40.31%. The firm had revenue of $794.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $726.82 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.17 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that United Therapeutics will post 24.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 11,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.18, for a total value of $3,367,980.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 36,781 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,261,606.58. This trade represents a 23.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Raymond Dwek sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.55, for a total value of $1,138,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at $497,962.50. The trade was a 69.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 56,500 shares of company stock valued at $16,923,950. 10.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of United Therapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its position in United Therapeutics by 2,090,573.5% in the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 18,314,300 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $6,462,018,000 after purchasing an additional 18,313,424 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in United Therapeutics by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,457,135 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,374,001,000 after purchasing an additional 15,312 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 36.5% in the fourth 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. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,138,292 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $401,184,000 after acquiring an additional 44,277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in United Therapeutics by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 975,444 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $344,176,000 after purchasing an additional 7,710 shares in the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.