United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) Position Boosted by Westpac Banking Corp

Westpac Banking Corp boosted its holdings in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,249 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $441,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of United Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in United Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at about $67,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 31.9% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 240 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $85,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 678.9% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 296 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $104,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the period. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of United Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $131,000. Institutional investors own 94.08% of the company’s stock.

United Therapeutics Price Performance

United Therapeutics stock opened at $292.46 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $13.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.64. United Therapeutics Co. has a fifty-two week low of $230.39 and a fifty-two week high of $417.82. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $333.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $354.39.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $6.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.10 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $735.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $734.74 million. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 19.22%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.36 EPS. On average, analysts expect that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at United Therapeutics

In other United Therapeutics news, Director Tommy G. Thompson sold 2,500 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.80, for a total transaction of $797,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,703,424. The trade was a 22.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $364.91, for a total transaction of $3,649,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $940,373.07. This trade represents a 79.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 72,500 shares of company stock valued at $26,134,500. Company insiders own 11.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on UTHR. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $425.00 target price on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com downgraded United Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on United Therapeutics from $415.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $388.25.

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.