Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Shares Purchased by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 40.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,538,875 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 439,540 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 1.17% of Natera worth $243,604,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of NTRA. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Natera by 104.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted 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 valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in 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 during the period. Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Natera by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 1,328.0% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 357 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 332 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.69, for a total value of $590,760.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,433,183.76. This trade represents a 29.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 2,562 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.41, for a total value of $354,606.42. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 75,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,457,844.37. The trade was a 3.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 318,922 shares of company stock valued at $50,619,104. Insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Natera Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $140.65 on Wednesday. Natera, Inc. has a 1-year low of $83.13 and a 1-year high of $183.00. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $158.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $151.35. The firm has a market cap of $19.01 billion, a PE ratio of -79.91 and a beta of 1.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.23.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $476.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $447.91 million. On average, equities analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on NTRA. StockNews.com upgraded Natera from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Natera currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.12.

Natera 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.