United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) CEO Martine Rothblatt Sells 9,500 Shares

United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR) CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $547.61, for a total value of $5,202,295.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 40,513 shares in the company, valued at $22,185,323.93. This represents a 19.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

United Therapeutics Trading Down 0.3%

UTHR traded down $1.78 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $547.69. 388,825 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 478,978. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $567.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $518.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.57. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 1-year low of $272.12 and a 1-year high of $609.35.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The biotechnology company reported $5.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.00 by ($1.18). United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 40.62%.The firm had revenue of $781.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $797.40 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.63 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 26.92 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on UTHR. Raymond James Financial began coverage on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Friday, April 10th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $700.00 target price on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $525.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $575.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $655.00 to $705.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $619.42.

Institutional Trading of United Therapeutics

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in United Therapeutics by 17.3% during the 4th quarter. Avoro Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,606,060 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,269,803,000 after purchasing an additional 383,838 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 74.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,441,492 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,189,617,000 after buying an additional 1,042,711 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 29.9% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,281,699 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $624,508,000 after buying an additional 295,221 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 8.9% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 866,930 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $514,016,000 after buying an additional 70,829 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Darwin Global Management Ltd. acquired a new position in United Therapeutics during the third quarter worth about $317,617,000. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.