Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Increases Position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 912.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,329 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 8,408 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in Natera were worth $1,477,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Natera during the 3rd quarter worth about $385,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 42.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,099,335 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $144,958,000 after acquiring an additional 328,375 shares during the last quarter. Exome Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Natera by 20.4% during the 3rd quarter. Exome Asset Management LLC now owns 22,450 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,850,000 after purchasing an additional 3,800 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Natera by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,012,498 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $128,537,000 after purchasing an additional 28,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Natera by 345.8% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on NTRA. Barclays dropped their price objective on Natera from $200.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Natera from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Natera from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Natera currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $175.76.

Insider Activity

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 2,562 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.41, for a total value of $354,606.42. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 75,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,457,844.37. The trade was a 3.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider John Fesko sold 343 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.55, for a total transaction of $49,923.65. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 156,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,843,490.30. This trade represents a 0.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 198,743 shares of company stock valued at $30,558,447 in the last ninety days. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Natera Stock Down 0.4 %

NTRA stock traded down $0.69 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $153.79. 806,949 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,383,185. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $147.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $153.52. Natera, Inc. has a 1-year low of $90.88 and a 1-year high of $183.00. 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 company has a market cap of $20.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -87.38 and a beta of 1.80.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $476.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $447.91 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current 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.