AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs Acquires Shares of 8,033 Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs has acquired 8,033 shares of Natera, Inc., valued at approximately $1,136,000, indicating growing institutional interest in the medical research company.
• Natera recently reported quarterly earnings with a revenue of $546.60 million, significantly surpassing analysts' expectations, although it missed EPS estimates by $0.14.
• Several analysts have set positive price targets for Natera, with Royal Bank Of Canada giving a target of $268.00 and Morgan Stanley setting it at $195.00, reflecting a generally optimistic outlook for the company's stock.

AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs bought a new position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 8,033 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $1,136,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Natera by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,393,827 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,752,611,000 after buying an additional 77,357 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Natera by 56.3% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,537,743 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,490,144,000 after buying an additional 3,795,315 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Natera by 13.7% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,035,979 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $287,908,000 after buying an additional 245,719 shares during the period. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Natera by 19.7% during the 1st quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 1,634,769 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $231,173,000 after buying an additional 268,715 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Natera Price Performance

Natera stock traded down $0.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $179.82. 167,968 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,446,431. Natera, Inc. has a 12 month low of $117.27 and a 12 month high of $183.00. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $156.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $154.77. The firm has a market cap of $24.68 billion, a PE ratio of -94.15 and a beta of 1.68.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.74) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.60) by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $546.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $476.84 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 22.22% and a negative net margin of 12.89%.The company's revenue was up 32.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.30) EPS. Natera has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 3,045 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 65,430 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,990,082. This represents a 4.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,299 shares of the 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 transaction, the director directly owned 8,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,358,628.48. This trade represents a 34.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 56,423 shares of company stock worth $8,459,656 over the last three months. Insiders own 5.63% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $268.00 price objective on Natera and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $220.00 price objective (up from $210.00) on shares of Natera in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a research note on Sunday, August 10th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $183.00 target price on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, August 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and seventeen have given a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Natera presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $194.00.

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.