Steven Leonard Chapman Sells 2,190 Shares of Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Stock

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 2,190 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.49, for a total transaction of $570,473.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 106,553 shares in the company, valued at $27,755,990.97. This represents a 2.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Steven Leonard Chapman also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, July 28th, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 3,580 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.07, for a total value of $909,570.60.
• On Thursday, June 4th, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 41,124 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.03, for a total value of $9,089,637.72.
• On Friday, May 1st, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 902 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.16, for a total value of $185,956.32.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NTRA stock opened at $269.66 on Friday. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $131.81 and a 1 year high of $288.04. The stock has a market cap of $38.62 billion, a PE ratio of -165.44 and a beta of 1.51. The business’s fifty day moving average is $245.48 and its 200-day moving average is $221.90.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Natera by 10.5% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,854,334 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,944,800,000 after buying an additional 1,225,420 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 94.7% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,976,325 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,140,026,000 after buying an additional 2,420,263 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Natera by 2.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,389,599 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $545,624,000 after acquiring an additional 72,087 shares in the last quarter. Coatue Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 1,446.1% during the fourth quarter. Coatue Management LLC now owns 2,633,334 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $603,270,000 after acquiring an additional 2,463,008 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Natera by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,608,644 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $596,078,000 after purchasing an additional 11,689 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Natera this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains favorable: Canaccord Genuity raised its price target to $330 and maintained a “buy” rating, while the broader analyst consensus is “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $267.83. Analyst and Natera market coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional ownership and recent buying provide additional support. Major investors including Coatue Management, Wellington Management, Norges Bank, JPMorgan and AQR Capital Management increased their positions; institutions collectively own approximately 99.9% of the stock.
• Neutral Sentiment: CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 5,064 shares worth about $1.28 million, while CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,770 shares for roughly $1.48 million. Because the sales were pre-arranged and intended to satisfy tax-withholding obligations, they are less likely to signal reduced management confidence. CFO SEC filing CEO SEC filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Insiders John Fesko and Solomon Moshkevich also sold shares under similar tax-related plans, while retaining sizable positions. Fesko’s latest sale involved 782 shares worth approximately $203,700. Fesko SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: The concentration of insider selling could create modest short-term selling pressure and may prompt valuation concerns. Natera also trades at a high valuation relative to its earnings profile, with a negative trailing price-to-earnings ratio, although no new operational warning accompanied the filings.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on NTRA shares. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Natera in a report on Monday, July 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $285.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. BTIG Research set a $275.00 target price on shares of Natera and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of Natera from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Natera from $280.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $267.83.

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.