Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC reduced its stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 5.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 440,211 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 25,099 shares during the quarter. Natera accounts for 1.4% of Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC’s holdings in Natera were worth $69,685,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Natera by 26.3% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 31,051 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,942,000 after purchasing an additional 6,467 shares during the last quarter. Commerce Bank acquired a new position in Natera during the third quarter worth $286,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Natera by 17.6% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,778 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $607,000 after purchasing an additional 714 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in Natera by 27.0% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 86,144 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $10,936,000 after purchasing an additional 18,316 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Natera during the third quarter worth $505,000. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Natera Price Performance

NTRA opened at $151.15 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $161.23 and a 200-day moving average of $150.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.43 billion, a P/E ratio of -85.88 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by $0.01. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. The business had revenue of $476.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.91 million. Equities analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Natera news, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.77, for a total transaction of $117,861.51. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 156,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,739,941.88. This represents a 0.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.69, for a total transaction of $590,760.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,704 shares in the company, valued at $1,433,183.76. The trade was a 29.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 306,797 shares of company stock worth $48,940,883. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Natera from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Natera from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Natera presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.12.

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.