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

Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its position in shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm 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 reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of UTHR. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 176.2% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,315 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $3,288,000 after purchasing an additional 9,133 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 19.0% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 25,686 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $5,901,000 after acquiring an additional 4,100 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank raised its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 5.9% in the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 165,911 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $38,113,000 after acquiring an additional 9,244 shares during the last quarter. Tri Locum Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at $15,959,000. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 12.4% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,321 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,880,000 after acquiring an additional 1,692 shares during the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on UTHR shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $315.00 to $432.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of United Therapeutics from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $310.00 to $321.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of United Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on United Therapeutics from $300.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $357.17.

United Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of United Therapeutics stock opened at $358.35 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $342.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $296.92. United Therapeutics Co. has a twelve month low of $208.62 and a twelve month high of $366.08. The company has a current ratio of 4.35, a quick ratio of 4.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.94, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.57.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.87% and a return on equity of 18.82%. The firm had revenue of $714.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $691.87 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.24 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at United Therapeutics

In other United Therapeutics news, CFO James Edgemond sold 7,796 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.04, for a total transaction of $2,760,095.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,264 shares in the company, valued at $1,509,626.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CFO James Edgemond sold 7,796 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.04, for a total transaction of $2,760,095.84. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 4,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,509,626.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.48, for a total value of $1,124,928.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $40,622.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 107,652 shares of company stock worth $35,785,807. Company insiders own 12.50% 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.