Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Receives $178.12 Average PT from Analysts

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) has earned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $178.12.

NTRA has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Natera from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, February 28th.

Insider Activity at Natera

In related news, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.69, for a total value of $590,760.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,433,183.76. This represents a 29.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.77, for a total value of $117,861.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 156,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,739,941.88. The trade was a 0.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 307,466 shares of company stock valued at $49,047,655 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NTRA. 111 Capital purchased a new stake in Natera in the fourth quarter valued at $397,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Natera by 79.5% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 19,493 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,086,000 after purchasing an additional 8,635 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Natera in the fourth quarter valued at $19,210,000. HWG Holdings LP boosted its holdings in Natera by 173.0% in the fourth quarter. HWG Holdings LP now owns 40,739 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $6,449,000 after purchasing an additional 25,819 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in Natera by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. now owns 96,105 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $15,213,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Natera Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $149.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.23 billion, a PE ratio of -85.02 and a beta of 1.80. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $161.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $149.27. Natera has a 1 year low of $83.13 and a 1 year high of $183.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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, equities analysts predict that Natera will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

Natera Company Profile

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.