Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $275.24 and last traded at $271.45, with a volume of 1371550 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $272.31.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NTRA. Wall Street Zen cut Natera from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $310.00 target price for the company. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $270.00 target price on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, May 8th. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Natera from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Natera from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $260.33.

Natera Stock Up 1.1%

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $218.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $216.89. The company has a market cap of $40.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -171.36 and a beta of 1.51.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 41,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.03, for a total transaction of $9,089,637.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 108,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,035,465.29. This trade represents a 27.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Herm Rosenman sold 16,530 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $4,132,500.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,250 shares in the company, valued at $1,062,500. The trade was a 79.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 175,872 shares of company stock valued at $38,808,996 over the last ninety days. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Natera by 38.1% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 779 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC raised its stake in Natera by 458.2% during the second quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC now owns 5,024 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,364,000 after buying an additional 4,124 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Natera by 3.4% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 5,452 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,090,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its holdings in Natera by 3.0% in the first quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 95,061 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $19,011,000 after buying an additional 2,805 shares during the period. Finally, Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new position in Natera in the first quarter valued at $6,410,000. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Natera

Natera is a global diagnostics company that develops and commercializes cell-free DNA and other genetic testing technologies for clinical applications. The company focuses on three principal areas: reproductive health (including non-invasive prenatal testing and carrier screening), oncology (tumor-informed assays for minimal residual disease and recurrence monitoring), and organ transplantation (cell-free DNA tests to detect allograft injury). Natera combines laboratory testing, proprietary bioinformatics, and clinical reporting to deliver personalized genetic information to clinicians and patients.

Key product offerings include Panorama, a non-invasive prenatal test that screens for fetal chromosomal abnormalities and select single-gene conditions; Horizon carrier screening for inherited conditions; Signatera, a personalized, tumor-informed assay used for detecting minimal residual disease and monitoring treatment response in cancer patients; and Prospera, a donor-derived cell-free DNA test used to assess the risk of organ rejection.