United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) Reaches New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday after The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on the stock from $218.00 to $240.00. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. United Therapeutics traded as high as $262.51 and last traded at $262.40, with a volume of 779488 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $258.13.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on UTHR. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on United Therapeutics from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on United Therapeutics from $309.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $308.00 price objective on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Leerink Partnrs restated an “outperform” rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, United Therapeutics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $308.78.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Therapeutics

In related news, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.31, for a total value of $1,291,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 36,599 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,880,130.69. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.31, for a total transaction of $1,291,860.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 36,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,880,130.69. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.59, for a total value of $3,548,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,756.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 141,790 shares of company stock valued at $33,572,685. 12.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in United Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at $32,000. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of United Therapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. grew its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 63.6% in the first quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 301 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the period. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. purchased a new stake in United Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at $91,000. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in United Therapeutics by 21.1% during the first quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 482 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $111,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.08% of the company’s stock.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $11.64 billion, a PE ratio of 12.41 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 4.41 and a quick ratio of 4.28. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $236.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $229.20.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The biotechnology company reported $6.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.63 by $0.54. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 18.72% and a net margin of 42.05%. The business had revenue of $677.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $620.31 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.86 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 33.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Co. will post 23.69 EPS for the current year.

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.