United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $388.25.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on UTHR shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of United Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $415.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, February 27th.

United Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of United Therapeutics stock opened at $281.16 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $323.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $351.09. The firm has a market cap of $12.63 billion, a PE ratio of 12.35, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.63. United Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $230.39 and a 1 year high of $417.82.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $6.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.10 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $735.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $734.74 million. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 19.22%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.36 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics will post 24.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Tommy G. Thompson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $318.80, for a total transaction of $797,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 8,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,703,424. This trade represents a 22.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $370.71, for a total value of $3,707,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $955,319.67. This represents a 79.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 77,500 shares of company stock worth $26,994,480. 11.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UTHR. Curat Global LLC bought a new stake in United Therapeutics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $63,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 84.7% in the 1st quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,297 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,325,000 after acquiring an additional 1,970 shares during the last quarter. Unigestion Holding SA purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics in the 1st quarter valued at $2,672,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 29,415.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 221,954 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $68,422,000 after purchasing an additional 221,202 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in United Therapeutics by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,643 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,991,000 after purchasing an additional 769 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.08% of the company’s stock.

United Therapeutics Company Profile

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.