Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Acquires 3,341 Shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) by 11.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 32,464 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,341 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $11,455,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in United Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at $435,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 20.4% in the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 3,584 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,284,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares in the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV grew its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 2,904 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,041,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 21.9% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 186,819 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $66,947,000 after purchasing an additional 33,599 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chase Investment Counsel Corp bought a new position in United Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $492,000. Institutional investors own 94.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $425.00 price objective on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group increased their price target on United Therapeutics from $415.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, StockNews.com cut United Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $388.25.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of UTHR opened at $307.09 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $351.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $359.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.49, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.64. United Therapeutics Co. has a 52 week low of $221.53 and a 52 week high of $417.82.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $6.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.10 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $735.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $734.74 million. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 19.22% and a net margin of 40.31%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.36 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.48 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Louis W. Sullivan sold 26,209 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $373.22, for a total value of $9,781,722.98. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 5,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,885,134.22. This represents a 83.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $348.06, for a total value of $3,480,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 2,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $896,950.62. This trade represents a 79.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 116,464 shares of company stock valued at $42,396,244. 11.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.