ARK Investment Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

ARK Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 65.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 687,703 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 272,361 shares during the period. ARK Investment Management LLC owned 0.56% of Natera worth $87,304,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in NTRA. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Natera by 25.0% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,776 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $528,000 after acquiring an additional 1,155 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 19.2% in the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 9,047 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $827,000 after purchasing an additional 1,457 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 28.8% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,586 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,608,000 after purchasing an additional 3,927 shares in the last quarter. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Natera in the first quarter valued at about $1,189,000. Finally, Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 11.6% in the first quarter. Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC now owns 487,631 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $44,599,000 after purchasing an additional 50,617 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Natera Stock Up 2.9 %

Shares of NTRA stock traded up $3.72 during trading on Friday, hitting $134.11. The company had a trading volume of 1,228,735 shares, compared to its average volume of 872,423. The company has a current ratio of 4.14, a quick ratio of 4.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $124.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $113.28. Natera, Inc. has a one year low of $44.77 and a one year high of $134.33.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.30) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.69) by $0.39. Natera had a negative return on equity of 36.74% and a negative net margin of 21.47%. The firm had revenue of $413.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $343.00 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.97) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 58.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Leerink Partners boosted their price target on Natera from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on Natera from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Natera from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Natera from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Natera presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $125.69.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,866 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.45, for a total transaction of $235,955.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 68,851 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,706,208.95. This represents a 0.00 % 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. In other news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,583 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.91, for a total transaction of $663,874.53. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 200,710 shares of the company's stock, valued at $23,866,426.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,866 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.45, for a total transaction of $235,955.70. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 68,851 shares in the company, valued at $8,706,208.95. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 50,164 shares of company stock worth $6,157,291 over the last three months. Insiders own 7.60% 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.