Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Lowers Stake in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. decreased its position in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) by 25.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,667 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 1,581 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $1,647,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at about $82,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 31.9% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 240 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics in the third quarter valued at about $111,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.08% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Louis W. Sullivan sold 26,209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $373.22, for a total value of $9,781,722.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,885,134.22. The trade was a 83.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 7,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.37, for a total transaction of $2,882,649.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 36,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,743,122.70. This represents a 17.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 124,164 shares of company stock valued at $45,278,893 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 11.90% of the company’s stock.

United Therapeutics Trading Down 3.1 %

Shares of UTHR opened at $310.03 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $13.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.62, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a 50-day moving average of $358.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $360.88. United Therapeutics Co. has a 12-month low of $221.53 and a 12-month high of $417.82.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.10 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $735.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $734.74 million. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 19.22%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.36 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UTHR has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their target price 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. StockNews.com downgraded shares of United Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $425.00 price objective on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, United Therapeutics has an average 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.