Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Given Overweight Rating at Stephens

Stephens restated their overweight rating on shares of Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) in a report released on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $125.00 target price on the medical research company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Natera from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Friday. StockNews.com upgraded Natera from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Natera from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Natera in a report on Monday, June 3rd. They set a buy rating and a $142.00 target price for the company. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on Natera from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $112.80.

Natera Trading Up 6.4 %

NASDAQ:NTRA traded up $6.87 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $114.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,125,245 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,404,851. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 3.98 and a current ratio of 4.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -36.72 and a beta of 1.48. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $107.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.38. Natera has a 1 year low of $36.90 and a 1 year high of $117.39.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.30) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.69) by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $413.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $343.00 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 49.72% and a negative net margin of 30.24%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 58.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.97) earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Natera will post -2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other Natera news, insider Daniel Rabinowitz sold 1,057 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.77, for a total transaction of $108,627.89. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 206,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,211,728. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,866 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.65, for a total transaction of $185,946.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 71,955 shares in the company, valued at $7,170,315.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel Rabinowitz sold 1,057 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.77, for a total transaction of $108,627.89. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 206,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,211,728. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 88,387 shares of company stock valued at $9,547,136 in the last ninety days. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Natera

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Natera by 0.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,044,743 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,010,152,000 after buying an additional 72,848 shares during the period. Farallon Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Natera by 13.0% during the first quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 3,927,683 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $359,226,000 after purchasing an additional 452,800 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of Natera by 6.6% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,397,582 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $259,634,000 after purchasing an additional 148,917 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Natera by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,703,615 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $106,714,000 after purchasing an additional 112,825 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Natera during the 4th quarter valued at $83,970,000. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.