United Therapeutics (NASDAQ: UTHR) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Investment Research from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday. The analysts currently have a $50.00 price target on the stock.
Zacks’ analyst wrote, “United Therapeutics’ third-quarter earnings of $1.32 per share were well above the year-ago earnings of $0.67. Higher revenues and lower costs led to the improvement in earnings. We believe the company is well-positioned to gain share in the pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) market. Lead product, Remodulin, continues to look very strong in both the intravenous (IV) and subcutaneous (SC) forms. With the approval of Adcirca and Tyvaso, the company has a varied range of therapies available for the treatment of PAH. We believe the company’s PAH product portfolio will drive strong top-and bottom-line growth. However, we are not too bullish on the company’s chances of gaining US approval for oral treprostinil, given the mixed data on the candidate. Moreover, the company’s weak late-stage pipeline concerns us. Given the lack of significant near-term catalysts, we expect the stock to remain range bound in the coming months and are moving back to a Neutral recommendation.”
Separately, analysts at Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of United Therapeutics in a research note to investors on Tuesday, December 27th.
United Therapeutics Corporation is a biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of products to address the medical needs of patients with chronic diseases. The Company’s principal therapeutic platforms include Prostacyclin Analogs, Phosphodiesterase Type 5 (PDE5) inhibitors, Monoclonal Antibodies and Glycobiology Antiviral Agents. Prostacyclin Analogues are stable synthetic forms of prostacyclin. Its lead product is Remodulin (treprostinil) Injection (Remodulin) to be administered subcutaneously or intravenously for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). The Company’s PDE-5 inhibitor product is Adcirca (tadalafil) tablets (Adcirca), a once-daily oral therapy for the treatment of PAH. The Company is developing the antibodies 3F8 MAb and 8H9 MAb for the treatment of neuroblastoma and metastatic brain cancer, respectively. It began a Phase II clinical trial during the year ended December 31, 2009, with 3F8 in primary refractory neuroblastoma.
Shares of United Therapeutics traded down 0.61% during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $47.25. United Therapeutics has a 52 week low of $36.55 and a 52 week high of $70.74. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $42.49 and its 200-day moving average is $45.96. The company has a market cap of $2.756 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.87.