United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) Shares Sold by Metis Global Partners LLC

Metis Global Partners LLC lessened its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,504 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 95 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $539,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lifted its holdings in United Therapeutics by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 2,047 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $652,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 0.8% during the second quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 4,525 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,441,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. ClariVest Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 120.0% in the second quarter. ClariVest Asset Management LLC now owns 77 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its holdings in United Therapeutics by 14.0% in the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 343 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its stake in United Therapeutics by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 2,681 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $961,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on UTHR. Argus lifted their price objective on United Therapeutics from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $315.00 to $432.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of United Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH boosted their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $319.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Therapeutics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $370.86.

United Therapeutics Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ UTHR opened at $359.21 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $16.04 billion, a PE ratio of 15.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.56. United Therapeutics Co. has a 52-week low of $208.62 and a 52-week high of $417.82. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $363.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $329.40.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The biotechnology company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $722.62 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics Co. will post 25.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO James Edgemond sold 7,785 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $362.37, for a total transaction of $2,821,050.45. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $947,597.55. This trade represents a 74.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 269 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 130 shares in the company, valued at $45,293.30. This represents a 67.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 109,796 shares of company stock valued at $40,936,370. Insiders own 11.90% 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.