Geode Capital Management LLC Acquires 166,768 Shares of Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 7.0% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,552,725 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 166,768 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Natera were worth $430,640,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NTRA. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 56.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,537,743 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,490,144,000 after purchasing an additional 3,795,315 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Natera in the first quarter valued at about $113,375,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Natera by 140.4% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,253,790 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $177,298,000 after buying an additional 732,156 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Natera by 9.9% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,361,963 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,041,055,000 after buying an additional 660,538 shares during the period. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd grew its position in shares of Natera by 149.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 562,985 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $95,111,000 after buying an additional 336,985 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,867 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.64, for a total transaction of $355,924.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 64,126 shares in the company, valued at $12,224,980.64. This represents a 2.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.60, for a total value of $595,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 112,061 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,255,314.60. The trade was a 2.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 223,336 shares of company stock valued at $42,990,633. Corporate insiders own 5.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on NTRA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Natera from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Natera in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $195.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Natera from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Natera has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $216.65.

Natera Stock Performance

NASDAQ NTRA opened at $204.28 on Friday. Natera, Inc. has a 52 week low of $125.38 and a 52 week high of $212.21. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $181.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $165.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -89.21 and a beta of 1.75.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.64) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.39) by ($0.25). Natera had a negative net margin of 14.61% and a negative return on equity of 25.07%. The business had revenue of $592.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $514.55 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.26) earnings per share. Natera’s revenue for the quarter was up 34.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS 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.