Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) was upgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

NTRA has been the subject of a number of other research reports. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Natera from $218.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. BNP Paribas Exane raised Natera from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $172.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Stephens increased their price target on Natera from $197.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Natera from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Natera from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $231.18.

Natera Price Performance

NTRA stock opened at $228.84 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.65 billion, a P/E ratio of -99.93 and a beta of 1.62. Natera has a fifty-two week low of $125.38 and a fifty-two week high of $246.90. The business has a 50-day moving average of $222.09 and a 200-day moving average of $183.57.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Rowan E. Chapman sold 4,366 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.10, for a total transaction of $1,061,374.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 5,777 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,404,388.70. This trade represents a 43.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 4,692 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.76, for a total transaction of $1,082,725.92. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 113,065 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,090,879.40. The trade was a 3.98% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 336,481 shares of company stock worth $72,008,879 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 5.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Natera by 44.3% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,625,785 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,795,125,000 after purchasing an additional 3,263,822 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Natera in the 2nd quarter valued at $277,749,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in Natera by 140.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,253,790 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $177,298,000 after buying an additional 732,156 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Natera by 37.5% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,665,013 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $428,987,000 after buying an additional 727,366 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Natera by 39.0% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,400,065 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $386,338,000 after buying an additional 673,315 shares during the period. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Natera Company Profile

Natera is a global diagnostics company that develops and commercializes cell-free DNA and other genetic testing technologies for clinical applications. The company focuses on three principal areas: reproductive health (including non-invasive prenatal testing and carrier screening), oncology (tumor-informed assays for minimal residual disease and recurrence monitoring), and organ transplantation (cell-free DNA tests to detect allograft injury). Natera combines laboratory testing, proprietary bioinformatics, and clinical reporting to deliver personalized genetic information to clinicians and patients.

Key product offerings include Panorama, a non-invasive prenatal test that screens for fetal chromosomal abnormalities and select single-gene conditions; Horizon carrier screening for inherited conditions; Signatera, a personalized, tumor-informed assay used for detecting minimal residual disease and monitoring treatment response in cancer patients; and Prospera, a donor-derived cell-free DNA test used to assess the risk of organ rejection.