Bridgewater Associates LP Buys 45,975 Shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

Bridgewater Associates LP raised its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 74.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 107,730 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 45,975 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP owned about 0.24% of United Therapeutics worth $38,011,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in United Therapeutics by 30.4% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 11,588 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $4,098,000 after buying an additional 2,702 shares during the period. Milestone Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in United Therapeutics by 56.5% during the 4th quarter. Milestone Asset Management LLC now owns 2,874 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,014,000 after acquiring an additional 1,037 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP grew its position in United Therapeutics by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 39,289 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $13,863,000 after acquiring an additional 2,300 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in United Therapeutics by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 9,427 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $3,326,000 after purchasing an additional 789 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in United Therapeutics by 35.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 192,546 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $68,999,000 after purchasing an additional 50,291 shares during the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:UTHR traded down $0.46 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $284.73. 302,945 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 452,973. United Therapeutics Co. has a one year low of $233.28 and a one year high of $417.82. The company has a market cap of $12.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.63. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $316.61 and a 200 day moving average of $348.66.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $6.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $734.74 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.36 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on UTHR shares. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and set a $425.00 price target on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Therapeutics from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Therapeutics has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $388.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $364.91, for a total value of $3,649,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,577 shares in the company, valued at $940,373.07. This trade represents a 79.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Tommy G. Thompson sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $318.80, for a total value of $797,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 8,480 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,703,424. This trade represents a 22.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 91,500 shares of company stock worth $30,971,540. 11.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.