Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Upgraded to Hold by StockNews.com

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Thursday.

NTRA has been the subject of a number of other research reports. BTIG Research raised their price objective on Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Natera from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 9th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Natera from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Natera from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.44.

Natera Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of Natera stock opened at $122.40 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 4.01 and a current ratio of 4.14. Natera has a 52 week low of $36.90 and a 52 week high of $133.54. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $123.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $110.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.03 billion, a PE ratio of -39.23 and a beta of 1.53.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.30) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.69) by $0.39. Natera had a negative return on equity of 36.74% and a negative net margin of 21.47%. The firm had revenue of $413.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $343.00 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.97) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 58.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Natera will post -1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Natera

In related news, insider Jonathan Sheena sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.01, for a total transaction of $1,452,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 287,441 shares in the company, valued at $34,783,235.41. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 2,638 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.16, for a total value of $277,412.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 210,377 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,123,245.32. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jonathan Sheena sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.01, for a total value of $1,452,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 287,441 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,783,235.41. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 50,765 shares of company stock worth $6,016,700. 7.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Natera by 1,073.1% during the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 65,730 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $7,118,000 after acquiring an additional 60,127 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in Natera by 15.1% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 74,460 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $6,810,000 after acquiring an additional 9,781 shares during the period. Natixis purchased a new stake in Natera during the 1st quarter valued at about $758,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Natera by 19.9% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 863,406 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $78,967,000 after acquiring an additional 143,246 shares during the period. Finally, Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft purchased a new stake in Natera during the 2nd quarter valued at about $478,000. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Natera

Natera, Inc, a diagnostics company, develops and commercializes molecular testing services worldwide. Its products include Panorama, a non-invasive prenatal test that screens for chromosomal abnormalities of a fetus, as well as in twin pregnancies; Horizon carrier screening test for individuals and couples determine if they are carriers of genetic variations that cause certain genetic conditions; Vistara single-gene NIPT screens for 25 single-gene disorders that cause severe skeletal, cardiac, and neurological conditions; Spectrum, preimplantation genetic tests for couples undergoing IVF; Anora that analyzes miscarriage tissue from women; Empower, a hereditary cancer screening test; and non-invasive prenatal paternity product, which allows a couple to establish paternity without waiting for the child to be born.