United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) Shares Purchased by Brandes Investment Partners LP

Brandes Investment Partners LP raised its holdings in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) by 4.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,916 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 926 shares during the period. Brandes Investment Partners LP’s holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $6,332,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its stake in United Therapeutics by 1.6% during the second quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 2,047 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $652,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 4,525 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,441,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. ClariVest Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 120.0% during the 2nd quarter. ClariVest Asset Management LLC now owns 77 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its position in United Therapeutics by 14.0% during the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 343 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $109,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Access Investment Management LLC increased its position in United Therapeutics by 0.8% during the second quarter. Access Investment Management LLC now owns 7,265 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,314,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on UTHR shares. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $303.00 to $280.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on United Therapeutics from $315.00 to $432.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on United Therapeutics from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $270.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on United Therapeutics from $400.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, United Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $357.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 3,600 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $317.05, for a total value of $1,141,380.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,216.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other United Therapeutics news, CFO James Edgemond sold 7,785 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $362.37, for a total value of $2,821,050.45. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 2,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $947,597.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 3,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $317.05, for a total transaction of $1,141,380.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 130 shares in the company, valued at $41,216.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 107,652 shares of company stock worth $35,785,807. 12.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of UTHR stock opened at $358.35 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $342.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $296.92. The company has a quick ratio of 4.18, a current ratio of 4.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.89 billion, a PE ratio of 16.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.57. United Therapeutics Co. has a 52-week low of $208.62 and a 52-week high of $366.08.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The biotechnology company reported $5.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.48). United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 18.82% and a net margin of 40.87%. The company had revenue of $714.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $691.87 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.24 EPS. United Therapeutics’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.71 EPS for the current year.

United Therapeutics 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.