6,291 Shares in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Purchased by Banque Cantonale Vaudoise

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired 6,291 shares of Natera, Inc. in Q1, totaling approximately $890,000, reflecting growing institutional interest in the company.
• Several analysts have recently adjusted their price targets for Natera, with UBS raising it from $211 to $218, while Barclays increased it to $190, indicating a generally positive sentiment.
• Natera reported earnings that surpassed expectations, with a revenue increase of 36.5% year-over-year, despite a net loss, showcasing potential growth amid challenges.

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 6,291 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $890,000.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in Natera during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 117.8% in the 1st quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 220 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC bought a new stake in Natera during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Natera by 114.8% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 232 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd bought a new position in Natera in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. 99.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NTRA has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group increased their target price on Natera from $211.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Natera to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $170.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Natera from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, May 17th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Natera from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Natera currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $183.76.

Natera Trading Down 5.2%

NASDAQ NTRA opened at $133.66 on Friday. Natera, Inc. has a 12 month low of $92.14 and a 12 month high of $183.00. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $157.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $156.09. The company has a market capitalization of $18.25 billion, a PE ratio of -90.92 and a beta of 1.73.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.50) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.59) by $0.09. The company had revenue of $501.83 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $446.68 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 18.29% and a negative net margin of 10.36%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 36.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.56) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,299 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.36, for a total value of $719,480.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 8,118 shares in the company, valued at $1,358,628.48. This represents a 34.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 3,045 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.40, for a total value of $418,383.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 65,430 shares in the company, valued at $8,990,082. The trade was a 4.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 48,936 shares of company stock worth $7,483,846 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

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.

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