Canaccord Genuity Group Increases Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Price Target to $180.00

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) had its target price upped by analysts at Canaccord Genuity Group from $165.00 to $180.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the medical research company’s stock. Canaccord Genuity Group’s price objective points to a potential upside of 7.40% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Craig Hallum boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $121.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. StockNews.com cut Natera from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Natera from $132.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Natera from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen 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 $153.67.

Natera Stock Up 4.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $167.60 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $155.07 and its 200 day moving average is $129.99. The stock has a market cap of $22.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -95.23 and a beta of 1.65. Natera has a 52-week low of $58.53 and a 52-week high of $175.63. The company has a quick ratio of 4.23, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.57) by $0.31. The business had revenue of $439.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $361.43 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. The business’s revenue was up 63.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.95) EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Natera will post -1.61 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Natera news, Director Roelof Botha sold 87,473 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.12, for a total value of $14,793,433.76. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,224,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,135,977.44. This represents a 6.67 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 1,709 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.76, for a total transaction of $206,378.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 194,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,501,707.40. This represents a 0.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 127,932 shares of company stock valued at $20,635,430. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Natera by 345.8% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Natera in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Natera by 148.4% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 318 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its position in Natera by 34.3% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Natera by 32.7% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 430 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

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.