Short Interest in United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR) Decreases By 14.3%

United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,920,000 shares, a decline of 14.3% from the December 31st total of 2,240,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 317,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.1 days. Currently, 4.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Oppenheimer upped their target price on United Therapeutics from $575.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com raised United Therapeutics from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised their price objective on United Therapeutics from $319.00 to $344.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on United Therapeutics from $243.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, United Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $378.36.

United Therapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:UTHR traded down $1.15 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $353.43. 311,747 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 301,106. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.52, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.57. United Therapeutics has a twelve month low of $208.62 and a twelve month high of $417.82. The business's fifty day moving average price is $364.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $357.51.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Therapeutics

In related news, COO Michael Benkowitz sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $370.71, for a total value of $3,707,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 2,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $955,319.67. This trade represents a 79.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Louis W. Sullivan sold 26,209 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $373.22, for a total transaction of $9,781,722.98. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,885,134.22. This represents a 83.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 133,838 shares of company stock valued at $50,445,556 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 11.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Therapeutics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,094,015 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $391,459,000 after purchasing an additional 45,566 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in United Therapeutics by 41.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,077,628 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $386,168,000 after buying an additional 314,004 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in United Therapeutics by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 597,634 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $210,869,000 after acquiring an additional 30,931 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in United Therapeutics by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 460,419 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $164,978,000 after acquiring an additional 50,409 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 56.9% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 419,957 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $150,492,000 after purchasing an additional 152,249 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.08% of the company's stock.

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.