United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

UTHR has been the subject of a number of other research reports. TD Cowen upped their price target on United Therapeutics from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH increased their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $319.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $415.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Argus increased their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $315.00 to $432.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. One 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.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $378.36.

United Therapeutics Stock Up 1.3 %

NASDAQ UTHR opened at $366.39 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.09, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $369.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $353.37. United Therapeutics has a 52 week low of $208.62 and a 52 week high of $417.82.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The biotechnology company reported $6.39 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $748.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $722.62 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.38 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics will post 25.22 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at United Therapeutics

In other news, Director Nilda Mesa sold 224 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $412.28, for a total value of $92,350.72. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,783 shares in the company, valued at $2,384,215.24. The trade was a 3.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Christopher Causey sold 510 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $376.63, for a total transaction of $192,081.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,384,115.25. The trade was a 12.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 144,630 shares of company stock valued at $54,371,916 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 11.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Therapeutics

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of UTHR. Atwood & Palmer Inc. boosted its stake in United Therapeutics by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 64,575 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $22,785,000 after buying an additional 519 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in United Therapeutics by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,101 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $388,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in United Therapeutics during the 4th quarter valued at about $376,000. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in United Therapeutics by 36.6% in the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,463 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,222,000 after purchasing an additional 927 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.08% of the company’s stock.

About United Therapeutics

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.