Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Cuts Stake in United Therapeutics Corporation $UTHR

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lessened its holdings in United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR) by 15.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 120,682 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 21,610 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned 0.28% of United Therapeutics worth $71,562,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Leuthold Group LLC boosted its position in United Therapeutics by 41.4% during the 4th quarter. Leuthold Group LLC now owns 10,672 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $5,200,000 after buying an additional 3,126 shares during the period. UBS Group AG increased its position in shares of United Therapeutics by 45.3% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 225,849 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $110,045,000 after acquiring an additional 70,445 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd purchased a new position in shares of United Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,059,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 88.6% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 26,960 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $13,136,000 after acquiring an additional 12,663 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brookstone Capital Management raised its stake in shares of United Therapeutics by 25.4% during the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 6,622 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $3,227,000 after acquiring an additional 1,342 shares during the last quarter. 94.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UTHR has been the subject of several research analyst reports. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on United Therapeutics from $701.00 to $704.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $516.00 price target on United Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. HC Wainwright lifted their price target on shares of United Therapeutics from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of United Therapeutics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $575.00 to $735.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $648.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO James Edgemond sold 10,000 shares of United Therapeutics stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $578.58, for a total value of $5,785,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,876 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,921,276.08. This trade represents a 34.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold 513,333 shares of company stock worth $286,933,042 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 8.60% of the company’s stock.

United Therapeutics Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of UTHR stock opened at $528.47 on Friday. United Therapeutics Corporation has a 12 month low of $272.12 and a 12 month high of $609.35. The stock has a market cap of $22.43 billion, a PE ratio of 19.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $547.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $531.39.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ:UTHR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The biotechnology company reported $5.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.00 by ($1.18). United Therapeutics had a net margin of 40.62% and a return on equity of 19.24%. The company had revenue of $781.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $797.40 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.63 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that United Therapeutics Corporation will post 26.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Therapeutics Profile

United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ: UTHR) is a biotechnology company dedicated to the development and commercialization of unique products to address life-threatening illnesses. The company’s primary focus has been on pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), where it has launched several therapies designed to improve functional capacity and quality of life for patients. Its marketed products include continuous infusion treprostinil (Remodulin), inhaled treprostinil (Tyvaso), oral treprostinil (Orenitram) and tadalafil (Adcirca), each tailored to different modes of administration and patient needs.