Brandes Investment Partners LP Sells 10,210 Shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

Brandes Investment Partners LP trimmed its position in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 87.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,484 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 10,210 shares during the quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP's holdings in United Therapeutics were worth $524,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its position in United Therapeutics by 2,090,573.5% during the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 18,314,300 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $6,462,018,000 after buying an additional 18,313,424 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in United Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $139,206,000. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 41.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,077,628 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $386,168,000 after purchasing an additional 314,004 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 577.1% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 189,780 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $66,962,000 after purchasing an additional 161,751 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 97.7% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 250,719 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $89,532,000 after purchasing an additional 123,929 shares during the period. 94.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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United Therapeutics Price Performance

Shares of UTHR stock traded up $15.70 during trading on Monday, reaching $322.94. The company had a trading volume of 400,603 shares, compared to its average volume of 443,935. The company has a market capitalization of $14.50 billion, a PE ratio of 14.18, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.64. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $349.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $358.27. United Therapeutics Co. has a one year low of $221.53 and a one year 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 analysts' consensus estimates of $6.10 by $0.09. United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 19.22%. The business had revenue of $735.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $734.74 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.36 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Therapeutics

In related news, Director Nilda Mesa sold 255 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.77, for a total transaction of $90,721.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,528 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,966,696.56. The trade was a 4.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.76, for a total transaction of $3,607,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 2,577 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $929,678.52. The trade was a 79.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 116,464 shares of company stock worth $42,396,244 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 11.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $415.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com lowered 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 research report on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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.