Meeder Asset Management Inc. Buys 3,184 Shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 7,765.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,225 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 3,184 shares during the quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Natera were worth $409,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Natera during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Natera by 148.4% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 318 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Natera by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 324 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 34.3% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tobam acquired a new stake in Natera during the second quarter worth about $74,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Natera Trading Up 3.6 %

Natera stock traded up $5.78 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $167.88. 2,033,270 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,347,088. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $129.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $117.00. Natera, Inc. has a 52 week low of $53.62 and a 52 week high of $169.71. The company has a quick ratio of 4.23, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.16 billion, a PE ratio of -95.39 and a beta of 1.53.

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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.57) by $0.31. The company had revenue of $439.80 million during 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 period last year, the business earned ($0.95) EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Natera

In other news, Director Rowan E. Chapman sold 2,614 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.68, for a total transaction of $333,755.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,017,481.92. This represents a 24.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 4,728 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.41, for a total transaction of $692,226.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 185,034 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,090,827.94. This represents a 2.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 36,821 shares of company stock worth $4,776,878. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on Natera from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Natera from $132.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Natera from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $140.59.

Natera 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.