United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) CEO Sells $4,687,870.00 in Stock

United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR) CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $493.46, for a total value of $4,687,870.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 324,443 shares in the company, valued at $160,099,642.78. The trade was a 2.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link.

United Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of United Therapeutics stock traded down $1.78 during trading on Thursday, hitting $490.24. 469,574 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 494,247. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.56. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 1-year low of $375.61 and a 1-year high of $609.35. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $528.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $539.79.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported $7.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.86 by $0.41. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 41.56% and a return on equity of 20.18%. The business had revenue of $783.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $804.65 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $6.41 EPS. United Therapeutics’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 26.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on UTHR. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $704.00 to $677.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $685.00 to $687.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised United Therapeutics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $575.00 to $735.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered United Therapeutics from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $646.00.

Institutional Trading of United Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in United Therapeutics by 141.7% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 145 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 18.8% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 443 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $127,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics during the second quarter worth $277,000. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 77.3% during the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 12,843 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $3,691,000 after acquiring an additional 5,600 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its position in United Therapeutics by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 1,628 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $468,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.