KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Takes $3.77 Million Position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund acquired 23,800 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,768,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Natera by 104.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Natera by 345.8% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Natera by 372.9% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 331 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its stake in Natera by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Natera during the 3rd quarter valued at about $57,000. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other Natera news, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.77, for a total transaction of $117,861.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 156,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,739,941.88. This represents a 0.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 6,702 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.03, for a total value of $978,693.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 203,354 shares in the company, valued at $29,695,784.62. This trade represents a 3.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 306,797 shares of company stock valued at $48,940,883 in the last three months. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com raised Natera from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays initiated coverage on Natera in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Natera from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock 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 assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.12.

Natera Trading Down 3.1 %

Shares of Natera stock opened at $149.84 on Thursday. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $83.13 and a fifty-two week high of $183.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a current ratio of 4.39. The company has a market capitalization of $20.26 billion, a P/E ratio of -85.14 and a beta of 1.80. The company has a fifty day moving average of $160.29 and a 200 day moving average of $150.55.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $476.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.91 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.