Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Hits New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $236.74 and last traded at $234.4650, with a volume of 645520 shares. The stock had previously closed at $230.63.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NTRA. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded Natera from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $172.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Stephens increased their target price on Natera from $197.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Zacks Research downgraded Natera from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised Natera to a “hold” rating and set a $172.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, October 27th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Natera presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $220.29.

Natera Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $32.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -104.18 and a beta of 1.74. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $186.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $167.96.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.64) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.39) by ($0.25). The business had revenue of $592.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $514.55 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.61% and a negative return on equity of 25.07%. Natera’s revenue for the quarter was up 34.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($0.26) EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other Natera news, Director Roy D. Baynes sold 7,668 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.08, for a total value of $1,710,577.44. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 18,359 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,095,525.72. The trade was a 29.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 160,703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.96, for a total value of $32,134,171.88. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 144,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,957,407.36. This trade represents a 52.60% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 236,116 shares of company stock valued at $45,800,290. 5.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Natera by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,676,653 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,141,594,000 after acquiring an additional 282,826 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Natera by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 11,628,914 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,871,914,000 after buying an additional 1,003,129 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Natera by 56.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,537,743 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,490,144,000 after buying an additional 3,795,315 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Natera by 2.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,389,599 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $545,624,000 after acquiring an additional 72,087 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 37.5% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,665,013 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $428,987,000 after acquiring an additional 727,366 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.