Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Lowers Stake in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp cut its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,703 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 3,723 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp owned 0.10% of United Therapeutics worth $16,126,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Wealthfront Advisers LLC increased its stake in United Therapeutics by 2,090,573.5% in 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 purchasing an additional 18,313,424 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics during the third quarter worth approximately $139,206,000. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 41.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,077,628 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $386,168,000 after purchasing an additional 314,004 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in United Therapeutics by 1,325.5% in the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 204,299 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $72,085,000 after buying an additional 189,967 shares during the period. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 577.1% during the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 189,780 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $66,962,000 after acquiring an additional 161,751 shares during the period. 94.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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United Therapeutics Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of UTHR traded up $5.01 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $311.89. 111,865 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 449,276. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $337.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $355.39. United Therapeutics Co. has a fifty-two week low of $225.62 and a fifty-two week high of $417.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.01 billion, a PE ratio of 13.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.64.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $6.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.36 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on UTHR shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of United Therapeutics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $415.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $425.00 price target on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, United Therapeutics has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $388.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Tommy G. Thompson sold 2,500 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.80, for a total value of $797,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 8,480 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,703,424. The trade was a 22.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $348.06, for a total value of $3,480,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 2,577 shares in the company, valued at $896,950.62. This trade represents a 79.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 72,500 shares of company stock valued at $26,134,500. Company insiders own 11.90% of the company's stock.

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.