Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Sanford C. Bernstein Analyst Says

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) had its target price upped by Sanford C. Bernstein from $160.00 to $200.00 in a report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the medical research company’s stock.

NTRA has been the subject of a number of other reports. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on Natera from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Craig Hallum increased their price target on shares of Natera from $121.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Natera from $132.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Natera from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Natera has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $158.00.

Natera Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $175.00 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $23.10 billion, a PE ratio of -99.43 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a current ratio of 4.39. The company’s fifty day moving average is $160.14 and its 200-day moving average is $132.29. Natera has a 52 week low of $59.80 and a 52 week high of $177.00.

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

Insider Activity at Natera

In other Natera news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 1,709 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.76, for a total value of $206,378.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 194,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,501,707.40. The trade was a 0.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider John Fesko sold 669 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.60, for a total transaction of $106,772.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 114,142 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,217,063.20. This represents a 0.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 127,932 shares of company stock worth $20,635,430. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Natera during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Natera by 148.4% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 318 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Natera by 345.8% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in Natera by 34.3% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Natera by 32.7% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 430 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Natera Company 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.