EAM Global Investors LLC Takes $4.64 Million Position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

EAM Global Investors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 29,293 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,637,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 2.4% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 10,319 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,309,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its position in Natera by 34.6% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 4,593 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $583,000 after buying an additional 1,180 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in Natera by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 5,513 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $699,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its position in Natera by 113.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 7,486 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $950,000 after acquiring an additional 3,973 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Natera during the third quarter worth $385,000. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Stock Performance

NTRA stock opened at $151.74 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $20.51 billion, a PE ratio of -86.22 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. The business has a 50 day moving average of $151.62 and a 200-day moving average of $152.40.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) EPS for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $447.91 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Natera

In related news, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.48, for a total value of $421,440.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 141,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,917,535.36. This represents a 2.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible 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 completion of 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 325,922 shares of company stock worth $51,603,664. 7.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on NTRA shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Natera from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on Natera in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $251.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Natera from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Natera from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.76.

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.