Natera, Inc. $NTRA Holdings Lifted by Narwhal Capital Management

Narwhal Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 33.3% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 13,325 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,332 shares during the quarter. Narwhal Capital Management’s holdings in Natera were worth $2,251,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Natera by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,393,827 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,752,611,000 after purchasing an additional 77,357 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Natera by 56.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,537,743 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,490,144,000 after purchasing an additional 3,795,315 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Natera by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,361,963 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,041,055,000 after purchasing an additional 660,538 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Natera by 13.7% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,035,979 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $287,908,000 after purchasing an additional 245,719 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. increased its position in Natera by 19.7% in the 1st quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 1,634,769 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $231,173,000 after purchasing an additional 268,715 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Stock Up 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $172.09 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $163.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.98. Natera, Inc. has a twelve month low of $117.27 and a twelve month high of $183.00. The company has a market cap of $23.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -90.10 and a beta of 1.74.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.74) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.60) by ($0.14). Natera had a negative net margin of 12.89% and a negative return on equity of 22.22%. The business had revenue of $546.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $476.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($0.30) EPS. Natera’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Natera has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI raised Natera to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $170.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $268.00 price target on Natera and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $210.00 price target (up previously from $190.00) on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $220.00 price target (up previously from $210.00) on shares of Natera in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $183.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, August 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $192.88.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 2,491 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.05, for a total transaction of $403,666.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 69,189 shares in the company, valued at $11,212,077.45. This represents a 3.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 14,083 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $2,253,280.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 154,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,651,520. The trade was a 8.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 72,464 shares of company stock worth $10,963,125 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 5.63% 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.