Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 8,430 Shares of Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 2.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 311,068 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 8,430 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.22% of Natera worth $62,210,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTRA. Horizon Investments LLC increased its stake in Natera by 22.0% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 244 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 270 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Savvy Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Natera by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Savvy Advisors Inc. now owns 1,541 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $353,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 5.5% during the first quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 982 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $196,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Finally, Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH lifted its position in Natera by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 1,804 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $290,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of NTRA stock opened at $269.83 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $38.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -165.54 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $232.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $220.05. Natera, Inc. has a one year low of $131.81 and a one year high of $288.04.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on NTRA. Wolfe Research started coverage on Natera in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Wednesday. BTIG Research set a $275.00 price objective on Natera and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Zacks Research lowered Natera from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $265.00 target price on Natera in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $267.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 41,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.03, for a total value of $9,089,637.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 108,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,035,465.29. This trade represents a 27.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.90, for a total value of $818,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 134,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,744,074.70. The trade was a 2.18% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 178,872 shares of company stock worth $39,627,696 in the last three months. Insiders own 5.05% of the company’s stock.

Natera Company Profile

Natera is a global diagnostics company that develops and commercializes cell-free DNA and other genetic testing technologies for clinical applications. The company focuses on three principal areas: reproductive health (including non-invasive prenatal testing and carrier screening), oncology (tumor-informed assays for minimal residual disease and recurrence monitoring), and organ transplantation (cell-free DNA tests to detect allograft injury). Natera combines laboratory testing, proprietary bioinformatics, and clinical reporting to deliver personalized genetic information to clinicians and patients.

Key product offerings include Panorama, a non-invasive prenatal test that screens for fetal chromosomal abnormalities and select single-gene conditions; Horizon carrier screening for inherited conditions; Signatera, a personalized, tumor-informed assay used for detecting minimal residual disease and monitoring treatment response in cancer patients; and Prospera, a donor-derived cell-free DNA test used to assess the risk of organ rejection.