United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its position in shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 28.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 112,473 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 44,683 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.25% of United Therapeutics worth $40,305,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 1.6% in the second quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 2,047 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $652,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 0.8% during the second quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 4,525 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,441,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. ClariVest Asset Management LLC raised its position in United Therapeutics by 120.0% in the second quarter. ClariVest Asset Management LLC now owns 77 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its holdings in United Therapeutics by 14.0% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 343 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $109,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.08% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other United Therapeutics news, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 3,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $344.18, for a total value of $1,239,048.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 130 shares in the company, valued at $44,743.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 14,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $374.46, for a total transaction of $5,504,562.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,577 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $964,983.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 3,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $344.18, for a total value of $1,239,048.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 130 shares of the company's stock, valued at $44,743.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 96,422 shares of company stock valued at $35,251,428 over the last ninety days. 11.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

NASDAQ UTHR traded up $0.58 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $401.02. The company had a trading volume of 258,449 shares, compared to its average volume of 463,839. United Therapeutics Co. has a 52 week low of $208.62 and a 52 week high of $417.82. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $359.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $324.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.59, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.56.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The biotechnology company reported $6.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.16 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $748.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $722.62 million. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 19.22% and a net margin of 40.31%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 22.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.38 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Co. will post 25.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on UTHR shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of United Therapeutics from $315.00 to $432.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on United Therapeutics from $243.00 to $302.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lifted their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $319.00 to $344.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com upgraded United Therapeutics from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Argus increased their price objective on shares of United Therapeutics from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $370.86.

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.