United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) Hits New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $399.62 and last traded at $397.92, with a volume of 11479 shares. The stock had previously closed at $397.49.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UTHR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Argus increased their price objective on United Therapeutics from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $243.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upped their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $319.00 to $344.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on United Therapeutics from $575.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $370.86.

United Therapeutics Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $357.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $320.37. The company has a market capitalization of $17.99 billion, a PE ratio of 17.46, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.56.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The biotechnology company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.16 by $0.23. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 19.22%. The company had revenue of $748.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $722.62 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.38 EPS. United Therapeutics’s quarterly revenue was up 22.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics Co. will post 25.57 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at United Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 269 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.41, for a total value of $93,722.29. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,293.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 3,600 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $344.18, for a total value of $1,239,048.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 130 shares in the company, valued at $44,743.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 269 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.41, for a total transaction of $93,722.29. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,293.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 81,422 shares of company stock valued at $29,229,828. 11.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Therapeutics

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in United Therapeutics by 33.7% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 14,332 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $5,136,000 after purchasing an additional 3,615 shares during the last quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in United Therapeutics by 59.2% during the third quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC now owns 38,906 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $13,942,000 after purchasing an additional 14,465 shares during the period. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 1.1% in the third quarter. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,833 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,090,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Archer Investment Corp purchased a new position in shares of United Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $283,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 20.9% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 6,248 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,239,000 after buying an additional 1,078 shares in the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.