Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) has received an average recommendation of “Buy” from the sixteen ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $170.94.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NTRA. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Craig Hallum lifted their target price on Natera from $121.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on Natera from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Guggenheim raised their price target on Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Natera from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th.

Natera Trading Down 3.5 %

NTRA opened at $162.31 on Monday. Natera has a 1-year low of $69.74 and a 1-year high of $183.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.43 billion, a PE ratio of -92.22 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $167.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $145.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,442 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.87, for a total transaction of $233,416.54. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 108,032 shares in the company, valued at $17,487,139.84. This represents a 1.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 295,772 shares of company stock valued at $49,741,699. 7.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in Natera in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Natera by 104.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Natera by 345.8% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Natera by 34.3% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Natera by 372.9% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 331 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.