Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Has $45.42 Million Holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP decreased its position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 286,909 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 1,763 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Natera were worth $45,418,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Natera by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,316,470 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,949,697,000 after buying an additional 879,463 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Natera by 43.7% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,701,425 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,060,836,000 after acquiring an additional 2,036,396 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Natera by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,240,041 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $512,898,000 after purchasing an additional 439,778 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,232,681 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $355,809,000 after purchasing an additional 142,201 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Natera by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,538,875 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $243,604,000 after purchasing an additional 439,540 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NTRA. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays cut their price target on Natera from $200.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $175.76.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In related news, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.77, for a total transaction of $117,861.51. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 156,044 shares in the company, valued at $27,739,941.88. The trade was a 0.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.69, for a total value of $590,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 9,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,433,183.76. This represents a 29.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 196,601 shares of company stock worth $29,831,575. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Natera Price Performance

NASDAQ NTRA opened at $156.66 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.18 billion, a PE ratio of -89.01 and a beta of 1.80. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $146.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $154.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a current ratio of 4.39. Natera, Inc. has a twelve month low of $92.14 and a twelve month high of $183.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by $0.01. The business had revenue of $476.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $447.91 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. Research analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

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.