Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Position in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) by 11.8% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 99,328 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after buying an additional 10,476 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $31,641,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UTHR. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in United Therapeutics by 13,769.2% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 9,015 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,982,000 after purchasing an additional 8,950 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 319,030 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $70,152,000 after acquiring an additional 7,723 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of United Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $198,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 90.3% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 55,481 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $12,200,000 after acquiring an additional 26,325 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in shares of United Therapeutics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $275,000. 94.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UTHR opened at $345.63 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $15.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.57. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $333.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $283.31. United Therapeutics Co. has a twelve month low of $208.62 and a twelve month high of $366.08. The company has a quick ratio of 4.18, a current ratio of 4.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The biotechnology company reported $5.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.48). The company had revenue of $714.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $691.87 million. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.87% and a return on equity of 18.82%. The business’s revenue was up 19.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.24 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.86 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of United Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of United Therapeutics from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $310.00 to $321.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $270.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $400.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $350.36.

Insider Activity at United Therapeutics

In other United Therapeutics news, Director Raymond Dwek sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.35, for a total transaction of $1,626,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $569,362.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other United Therapeutics news, Director Raymond Dwek sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.35, for a total transaction of $1,626,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $569,362.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 3,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.19, for a total value of $1,012,284.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,554.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 119,520 shares of company stock worth $38,572,141 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 12.50% of the company’s stock.

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.