Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Shares Acquired by Crestline Management LP

Crestline Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 53.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 102,303 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 35,818 shares during the period. Natera comprises about 0.5% of Crestline Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Crestline Management LP owned 0.08% of Natera worth $16,195,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Natera in the third quarter valued at approximately $385,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 328,375 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 2.9% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,012,498 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $128,537,000 after buying an additional 28,751 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Natera by 345.8% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Natera by 49.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 641 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $101,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on NTRA shares. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Natera from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on Natera in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $251.00 price target for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Natera from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Natera has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $181.82.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 87,272 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total transaction of $12,514,804.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 203,354 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,160,963.60. This trade represents a 30.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider John Fesko sold 343 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.55, for a total value of $49,923.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 156,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,843,490.30. This represents a 0.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 152,436 shares of company stock valued at $22,019,079. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of Natera stock traded down $11.58 during trading on Friday, hitting $150.99. 4,379,794 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,386,333. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $147.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $155.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -85.79 and a beta of 1.79. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $92.14 and a 1 year high of $183.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.50) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.59) by $0.09. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. The company had revenue of $501.83 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $446.68 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.56) EPS. The firm's revenue was up 36.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, 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.