United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo & Company Analyst Says

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company has increased the target price for United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) from $295.00 to $414.00, indicating a potential upside of 1.32% from the current stock price.
• Multiple analysts have given favorable ratings and price targets for UTHR, with Jefferies setting a target of $564.00 and Bank of America raising theirs to $463.00, suggesting a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."
• Despite reporting $6.41 earnings per share, United Therapeutics missed analysts' expectations of $6.80, although their quarterly revenue increased by 11.7% year-over-year.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) had its price objective boosted by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $295.00 to $414.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the biotechnology company's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target suggests a potential upside of 3.37% from the stock's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on UTHR. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, August 14th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $385.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $432.00 to $564.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $348.00 to $328.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $314.00 to $463.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $429.62.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:UTHR traded up $20.05 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $400.52. 924,693 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 848,265. The company has a market cap of $18.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.63, a P/E/G ratio of 6.08 and a beta of 0.62. United Therapeutics has a one year low of $266.98 and a one year high of $436.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $307.69 and a 200 day moving average of $305.80.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported $6.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.80 by ($0.39). United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.36% and a return on equity of 18.73%. The firm had revenue of $798.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $802.13 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.85 earnings per share. United Therapeutics's quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that United Therapeutics will post 24.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other United Therapeutics news, CFO James Edgemond sold 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.37, for a total transaction of $3,904,440.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 8,118 shares in the company, valued at $2,641,353.66. The trade was a 59.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 22,500 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.64, for a total value of $9,396,900.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 118,181 shares of company stock worth $39,441,679. 10.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in UTHR. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC bought a new position in shares of United Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. WealthCollab LLC raised its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 55.9% in the 2nd quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 106 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 76.7% in the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 106 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. SVB Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of United Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 100 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in 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.