Wealthfront Advisers LLC Acquires 18,313,424 Shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR)

Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics Co. (NASDAQ:UTHR - Free Report) by 2,090,573.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,314,300 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 18,313,424 shares during the period. United Therapeutics accounts for approximately 5.3% of Wealthfront Advisers LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Wealthfront Advisers LLC owned about 41.02% of United Therapeutics worth $6,462,018,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Milestone Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 56.5% in 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. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 9,427 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $3,326,000 after acquiring an additional 789 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 35.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 192,546 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $68,999,000 after acquiring an additional 50,291 shares during the period. Burney Co. increased its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 113.3% in the 4th quarter. Burney Co. now owns 23,922 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $8,441,000 after acquiring an additional 12,705 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in United Therapeutics by 97.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 250,719 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $89,532,000 after purchasing an additional 123,929 shares during the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $415.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $425.00 price target on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of United Therapeutics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a 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 assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $388.25.

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United Therapeutics Stock Up 0.6 %

UTHR stock opened at $317.87 on Tuesday. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $353.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $359.80. United Therapeutics Co. has a 52-week low of $221.53 and a 52-week high of $417.82. The firm has a market cap of $14.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.96, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.64.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $6.10 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $735.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 prior year, the company posted $4.36 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that United Therapeutics Co. will post 24.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at United Therapeutics

In related news, Director Louis W. Sullivan sold 26,209 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $373.22, for a total value of $9,781,722.98. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,885,134.22. This trade represents a 83.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Nilda Mesa sold 255 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The shares were 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 directly owns 5,528 shares in the company, valued at $1,966,696.56. This represents a 4.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 116,464 shares of company stock valued at $42,396,244. 11.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About United Therapeutics

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.

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