Bank of Nova Scotia Decreases Stock Position in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

Bank of Nova Scotia decreased its position in shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 45.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,717 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 1,420 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $606,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UTHR. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 2,090,573.5% during the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 18,314,300 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $6,462,018,000 after purchasing an additional 18,313,424 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in United Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at about $151,764,000. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 36.5% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,471,405 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $519,170,000 after buying an additional 393,777 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in United Therapeutics by 1,325.5% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 204,299 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $72,085,000 after acquiring an additional 189,967 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 577.1% in the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 189,780 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $66,962,000 after purchasing an additional 161,751 shares during the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UTHR traded down $0.46 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $284.73. 302,945 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 452,973. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $316.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $348.66. The company has a market cap of $12.79 billion, a PE ratio of 12.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.63. United Therapeutics Co. has a twelve month low of $233.28 and a twelve month high of $417.82.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $6.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.10 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $735.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 firm earned $4.36 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Therapeutics

In related news, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $364.91, for a total value of $3,649,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 2,577 shares in the company, valued at $940,373.07. This represents a 79.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 11,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.18, for a total transaction of $3,367,980.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 36,781 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,261,606.58. The trade was a 23.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 91,500 shares of company stock worth $30,971,540 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 11.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of United Therapeutics from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $415.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $388.25.

United Therapeutics Company 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.