United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) EVP Sells 8,300 Shares of Company Stock

United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR) EVP Paul Mahon sold 8,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $598.67, for a total transaction of $4,968,961.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 45,172 shares in the company, valued at $27,043,121.24. This represents a 15.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

United Therapeutics Stock Down 7.0%

UTHR traded down $42.77 on Thursday, reaching $565.72. 602,002 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 557,515. The company has a market cap of $24.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.35 and a beta of 0.49. United Therapeutics Corporation has a one year low of $444.04 and a one year high of $614.23. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $532.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $532.45.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The biotechnology company reported $5.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.01 by ($0.30). The company had revenue of $832.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $781.14 million. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 41.56%. The business’s revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $7.16 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 26.09 earnings per share for the current year.

United Therapeutics announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, October 22nd that permits the company to repurchase $2 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the biotechnology company to purchase up to 8.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in United Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at about $2,868,735,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 70,829 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at about $450,140,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 23.5% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 270,578 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $160,447,000 after buying an additional 51,555 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics during the second quarter valued at about $159,522,000. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on UTHR. Leerink Partners raised their price objective on United Therapeutics from $685.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $850.00 price target on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, October 26th. UBS Group set a $725.00 price target on United Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, October 19th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $728.00 price target on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $728.00 to $768.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $676.40.

United Therapeutics News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting United Therapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised their targets and maintained positive ratings: BTIG lifted its target to $768 with a Buy rating, RBC raised its target to $725 with an Outperform rating, and TD Cowen raised its target to $700 with a Buy rating. These revisions point to substantial potential upside in analysts’ view. BTIG analyst update RBC rating TD Cowen rating
• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue rose 4.1% year over year to $832.5 million, beating analyst expectations of about $781 million. The earnings-call coverage also pointed to stronger growth prospects and Tyvaso momentum. Q3 financial results Earnings-call highlights
• Positive Sentiment: United Therapeutics announced a buyout of Pfizer royalties tied to a lung-disease therapy, which may improve the company’s future economics from the treatment. Royalty buyout report
• Negative Sentiment: Quarterly EPS of $5.71 fell short of the approximately $6.01 consensus and declined from $7.16 a year earlier. The earnings miss, despite the revenue beat, likely weighed on shares as investors focused on profitability. Q3 EPS report

United Therapeutics Company Profile

United Therapeutics Corporation is a biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing therapies for patients with life-threatening conditions, particularly pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). The company’s portfolio includes Tyvaso and Tyvaso DPI, inhaled formulations of treprostinil; Remodulin, an injectable treprostinil product; and Orenitram, an oral treprostinil therapy. These treatments are designed to improve exercise ability and delay disease progression in people with PAH.

The company also markets Unituxin, an antibody therapy used as part of treatment for high-risk neuroblastoma, a type of childhood cancer.