United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) CEO Martine Rothblatt Sells 9,500 Shares of Stock

United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR) CEO Martine Rothblatt sold 9,500 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $582.76, for a total value of $5,536,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 324,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $189,072,402.68. This trade represents a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:UTHR traded up $5.34 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $592.84. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 559,175 shares, compared to its average volume of 557,910. United Therapeutics Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $409.07 and a fifty-two week high of $609.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $519.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $539.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.21, a PEG ratio of 4.26 and a beta of 0.49.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The biotechnology company reported $7.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.86 by $0.41. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 20.18% and a net margin of 41.56%. The business had revenue of $783.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $804.65 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.41 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 26.07 earnings per share for the current year.

United Therapeutics announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, October 22nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the biotechnology company to purchase up to 8.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on UTHR shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $728.00 target price on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $717.00 target price on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, October 20th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $515.00 to $566.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Leerink Partners upped their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $685.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of United Therapeutics from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $666.50.

Institutional Trading of United Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Toth Financial Advisory Corp grew its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 2,400.0% during the 2nd quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 50 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Fiduciary Financial Advisors bought a new position in United Therapeutics during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Caitlin John LLC bought a new position in United Therapeutics during the second quarter worth about $37,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 426.7% in the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 79 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFS Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Therapeutics in the third quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors own 94.08% of the company’s stock.

About United Therapeutics

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.