Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Shares Sold by Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. cut its stake in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 21.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 14,161 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 3,963 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Natera were worth $2,242,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NTRA. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in Natera by 37.9% in the 3rd quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 41,302 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $5,243,000 after purchasing an additional 11,362 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 27.0% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 86,144 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $10,936,000 after buying an additional 18,316 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Natera in the third quarter valued at about $385,000. Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Natera in the fourth quarter worth about $573,000. Finally, Jag Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Natera by 8.8% during the third quarter. Jag Capital Management LLC now owns 175,590 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $22,291,000 after acquiring an additional 14,159 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on NTRA. Leerink Partners increased their price objective on shares of Natera from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Natera from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Morgan Stanley boosted 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. StockNews.com downgraded Natera from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $158.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 1,196 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.21, for a total value of $141,379.16. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 110,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,085,255.95. This represents a 1.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rowan E. Chapman sold 1,767 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.24, for a total value of $300,814.08. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,202 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,055,828.48. This trade represents a 22.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 127,932 shares of company stock valued at $20,635,430 in the last three months. 7.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Natera Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NTRA traded down $1.61 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $175.00. 1,556,276 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,243,396. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a current ratio of 4.39. The firm has a market cap of $23.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -99.43 and a beta of 1.65. Natera, Inc. has a 52-week low of $59.80 and a 52-week high of $177.00. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $160.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $132.29.

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

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.