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Why Is United Therapeutics (UTHR) Up 4.8% Since Last Earnings Report?

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A month has gone by since the last earnings report for United Therapeutics (UTHR - Free Report) . Shares have added about 4.8% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is United Therapeutics due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers.

Q1 Earnings & Revenues Beat Estimates

United Therapeutics’ first-quarter 2024 earnings of $6.17 per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.63. Earnings rose 27% year over year on the back of higher product sales.

Revenues were $677.7 million, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $628 million. Revenues rose 34% year over year, driven by meaningful growth of all key products — Tyvaso, Orenitram, Remodulin and Unituxin.

Quarter in Detail

Tyvaso sales totaled $372.5 million, up 56% year over year. Tyvaso DPI recorded sales of $227.5 million, up 96% year over, while sales from nebulized Tyvaso were $145 million, up 21%. Tyvaso’s sales beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $361 million and our model estimate of $351.1 million.

Sales of Tyvaso DPI were driven by higher volumes and increased utilization of the drug due to the implementation of the Medicare Part D provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). On the call, the company said that PH-ILD was now nearly a $1-billion indication for Tyvaso.

Sales of nebulized Tyvaso rose due to easy comparison with the year-ago quarter. The year-ago revenues of nebulized Tyvaso included an inventory destocking by distributors that did not occur during first-quarter 2024.

Remodulin (including Remunity Pump) sales rose 5% year over year to $128.0 million, while Orenitram sales rose 20% year over year to $106.2 million.

Unituxin sales rose 19% year over year to $58.4 million. Adcirca sales were $6.4 million, down 12% year over year.

Research and development expenses were $104.1 million in the quarter, up 26% year over year. Selling, general and administrative expenses rose 65% to $144.4 million in the quarter.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

It turns out, estimates revision have trended upward during the past month.

The consensus estimate has shifted 5.22% due to these changes.

VGM Scores

At this time, United Therapeutics has a great Growth Score of A, a grade with the same score on the momentum front. Charting a somewhat similar path, the stock was allocated a grade of B on the value side, putting it in the top 40% for this investment strategy.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of A. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Outlook

Estimates have been broadly trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Notably, United Therapeutics has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.


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