The Goldman Sachs Group Raises United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) Price Target to $240.00

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) had its price objective hoisted by The Goldman Sachs Group from $218.00 to $240.00 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the biotechnology company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. HC Wainwright reissued a buy rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday. Oppenheimer upped their price target on United Therapeutics from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Thursday. Leerink Partnrs reissued an outperform rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $309.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an outperform rating and set a $308.00 price objective on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $308.78.

United Therapeutics Stock Up 1.7 %

UTHR traded up $4.27 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $262.40. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 779,523 shares, compared to its average volume of 541,180. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $236.86 and its 200-day moving average is $229.40. United Therapeutics has a 1 year low of $204.44 and a 1 year high of $262.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.41 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 3.77, a quick ratio of 4.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The biotechnology company reported $6.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.63 by $0.54. The business had revenue of $677.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $620.31 million. United Therapeutics had a return on equity of 18.72% and a net margin of 42.05%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 33.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.86 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that United Therapeutics will post 23.75 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other United Therapeutics news, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.59, for a total value of $3,548,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,756.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Paul A. Mahon sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.31, for a total transaction of $1,291,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 36,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,880,130.69. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Martine A. Rothblatt sold 15,000 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.59, for a total value of $3,548,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,756.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 141,790 shares of company stock worth $33,572,685 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 12.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of United Therapeutics

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in UTHR. TFB Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of United Therapeutics by 88.5% in the 1st quarter. TFB Advisors LLC now owns 1,909 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $487,000 after purchasing an additional 896 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd bought a new position in United Therapeutics during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,259,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S boosted its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 37.5% during the first quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 24,573 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $5,645,000 after buying an additional 6,708 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in shares of United Therapeutics in the first quarter worth approximately $131,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 15.2% during the first quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 3,677 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $845,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.