Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Stock Has Average Price Target of $353.45

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-three ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $368.69.

Several research analysts have commented on NTRA shares. Leerink Partners set a $330.00 target price on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, August 7th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Natera from $340.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Robert W. Baird set a $348.00 price target on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Natera from $220.00 to $284.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Natera from $365.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Michael Brophy sold 2,419 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.96, for a total value of $614,329.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 54,295 shares in the company, valued at $13,788,758.20. This represents a 4.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 15,160 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.89, for a total value of $4,955,652.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 110,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,238,698.51. This trade represents a 12.03% 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,985 shares of company stock valued at $16,119,137. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Natera in the second quarter worth approximately $2,962,770,000. Castle Hook Partners LP boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 24.1% during the fourth quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 2,167,869 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $496,637,000 after purchasing an additional 420,621 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,219,045 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $279,271,000 after purchasing an additional 110,715 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 111.1% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,179,939 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $270,312,000 after purchasing an additional 620,954 shares during the period. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. grew its position in Natera by 24.1% during the first quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 1,171,633 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $234,315,000 after purchasing an additional 227,605 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Natera Trading Down 0.2%

NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $394.75 on Friday. Natera has a 1-year low of $172.82 and a 1-year high of $437.41. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $353.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $272.86.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The medical research company reported ($0.47) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.49) by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $752.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $661.24 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 11.38% and a negative net margin of 7.11%. Natera’s revenue was up 37.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.74) EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Natera will post -1.02 EPS for the current year.

About Natera

Natera, Inc is a diagnostics company that develops and commercializes molecular testing services designed to assess genetic and disease-related risks. The company uses technologies including cell-free DNA analysis and next-generation sequencing to support clinical decision-making in reproductive health, oncology and organ transplantation.

Its reproductive health offerings include Panorama, a noninvasive prenatal test that screens for certain chromosomal conditions, and Horizon, a carrier screening test that evaluates whether prospective parents carry genetic variants associated with inherited disorders.