Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Stock Holdings Lessened by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. cut its stake in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 52.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 192,882 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 213,771 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.16% of Natera worth $24,486,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTRA. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Natera by 1,073.1% in the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 65,730 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $7,118,000 after acquiring an additional 60,127 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Natera by 15.1% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 74,460 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $6,810,000 after purchasing an additional 9,781 shares in the last quarter. Natixis acquired a new stake in shares of Natera during the 1st quarter valued at about $758,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Natera by 19.9% in 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 buying an additional 143,246 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft acquired a new position in Natera in the second quarter worth approximately $478,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NTRA has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Natera from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 9th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on Natera from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.44.

Insider Activity

In other Natera news, insider Jonathan Sheena sold 12,000 shares of Natera stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.01, for a total transaction of $1,452,120.00. Following the sale, the insider now 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 at this link. In other Natera news, insider Jonathan Sheena sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were 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 owns 287,441 shares in the company, valued at $34,783,235.41. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 4,084 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.77, for a total value of $419,712.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 206,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,200,731.61. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 50,149 shares of company stock worth $6,007,018. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of Natera stock opened at $117.67 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 4.14 and a quick ratio of 4.01. The company has a market cap of $14.55 billion, a PE ratio of -48.03 and a beta of 1.53. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $123.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.24. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $36.90 and a fifty-two week high of $133.54.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.30) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.69) by $0.39. The business had revenue of $413.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $343.00 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 36.74% and a negative net margin of 21.47%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 58.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.97) earnings per share. Analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.96 EPS for the current year.

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.