Wedmont Private Capital Acquires Shares of 1,276 United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

Wedmont Private Capital acquired a new position in shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,276 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $466,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UTHR. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,913 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,761,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 14.0% in the 2nd 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 last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. raised its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.08% of the company's stock.

United Therapeutics Trading Up 1.3 %

NASDAQ:UTHR traded up $4.75 on Thursday, reaching $366.39. 255,042 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 262,894. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.57. United Therapeutics Co. has a 1-year low of $208.62 and a 1-year high of $417.82. The company's 50 day moving average is $369.14 and its 200-day moving average is $353.37.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The biotechnology company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.16 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $748.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $722.62 million. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 19.22%. United Therapeutics's quarterly revenue was up 22.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.38 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Co. will post 25.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $364.62, for a total transaction of $3,646,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 2,577 shares of the company's stock, valued at $939,625.74. This trade represents a 79.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO James Edgemond sold 7,800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total transaction of $2,730,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,978 shares in the company, valued at $2,442,300. The trade was a 52.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 144,630 shares of company stock valued at $54,371,916 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 11.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on UTHR shares. StockNews.com upgraded United Therapeutics from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $315.00 to $432.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $575.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. HC Wainwright upped their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH boosted their price objective on United Therapeutics from $319.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $378.36.

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.