Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Shares Acquired by PNC Financial Services Group Inc.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 6.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,951 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Natera were worth $467,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Natera by 20.7% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Natera by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 3,629 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $574,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated increased its stake in shares of Natera by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 2,963 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $470,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Natera by 104.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Natera by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 998 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $158,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Trading Up 3.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $150.87 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $162.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $149.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -85.72 and a beta of 1.80. Natera, Inc. has a 12-month low of $83.13 and a 12-month high of $183.00. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.01. The company had revenue of $476.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.91 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. On average, equities analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 78,553 shares of Natera stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.97, for a total value of $12,958,888.41. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 267,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,150,756.13. The trade was a 22.69 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider John Fesko sold 669 shares of Natera stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.60, for a total transaction of $106,772.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 114,142 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,217,063.20. The trade was a 0.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 307,466 shares of company stock valued at $49,047,655 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NTRA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Natera in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Natera has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.12.

Natera Profile

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.