Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Price Target Raised to $165.00

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) had its price target raised by Canaccord Genuity Group from $150.00 to $165.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Canaccord Genuity Group currently has a buy rating on the medical research company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Leerink Partners raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Natera from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Natera from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $137.65.

Natera Price Performance

NASDAQ NTRA opened at $146.06 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -82.99 and a beta of 1.53. Natera has a 1-year low of $52.01 and a 1-year high of $167.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.01. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $127.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $115.61.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.57) by $0.31. The company had revenue of $439.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $361.43 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. Natera’s revenue for the quarter was up 63.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.95) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Natera will post -1.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Natera news, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 2,212 shares of Natera stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.53, for a total value of $350,668.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 19,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,073,262.58. This trade represents a 10.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 4,728 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.41, for a total transaction of $692,226.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 185,034 shares in the company, valued at $27,090,827.94. This represents a 2.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 36,821 shares of company stock worth $4,776,878. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTRA. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Natera in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Quarry LP lifted its position in Natera by 148.4% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 318 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Natera by 50.0% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 324 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in Natera by 34.3% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in Natera during the third quarter valued at $57,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

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.