Avanza Fonder AB Acquires Shares of 6,445 Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new stake in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 6,445 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $1,020,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Natera in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Natera by 148.4% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 318 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Natera by 345.8% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 34.3% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Natera by 32.7% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 430 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Natera Stock Performance

NASDAQ NTRA traded down $10.14 during trading on Monday, reaching $158.36. 2,384,566 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 982,752. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.23. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $164.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $134.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.91 billion, a P/E ratio of -89.98 and a beta of 1.65. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $62.96 and a fifty-two week high of $183.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.57) by $0.31. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. The business had revenue of $439.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $361.43 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.95) EPS. The firm's revenue was up 63.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Leerink Partners lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. StockNews.com cut shares of Natera from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Natera from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Natera from $132.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $160.63.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 3,960 shares of Natera stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.21, for a total transaction of $468,111.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 189,762 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,431,766.02. This trade represents a 2.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Fesko sold 669 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.60, for a total transaction of $106,772.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 114,142 shares in the company, valued at $18,217,063.20. This trade represents a 0.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 121,092 shares of company stock worth $19,765,830. 7.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.