Insider Selling: United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) CEO Sells 9,500 Shares of Stock

United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR) CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $571.22, for a total transaction of $5,426,590.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 40,513 shares in the company, valued at $23,141,835.86. This represents a 19.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UTHR traded up $0.28 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $571.35. 366,445 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 482,176. The company has a market cap of $25.04 billion, a PE ratio of 20.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.75. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $542.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $496.90. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 1-year low of $272.12 and a 1-year high of $607.89.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The biotechnology company reported $7.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.78 by $0.92. The business had revenue of $790.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $814.80 million. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 41.94% and a return on equity of 19.30%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.19 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 27.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UTHR has been the subject of several research reports. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. UBS Group raised their price objective on United Therapeutics from $655.00 to $705.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on United Therapeutics from $525.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on United Therapeutics from $575.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $601.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UTHR. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 141.7% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 145 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake 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 valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of United Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at $277,000. Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $3,691,000 after acquiring an additional 5,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 6.9% during the second 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 during the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About United Therapeutics

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.