Allstate Corp Acquires 5,084 Shares of Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• Allstate Corp more than doubled its Natera stake in Q4, adding 5,084 shares to bring its total to 9,900 shares valued at about $2.27 million.
• Natera’s stock rose 5.3% and opened at $213.94, while the company continues to trade well above its 1-year low but below its 1-year high.
• Natera recently posted better-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $0.35 per share versus estimates for a loss and revenue of $665.5 million, though analysts still expect a loss for the full year.

Allstate Corp grew its holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 105.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,900 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,084 shares during the period. Allstate Corp's holdings in Natera were worth $2,268,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTRA. Horizon Investments LLC acquired a new position in Natera during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Natera during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Natera by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 270 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. bought a new position in shares of Natera during the 4th quarter worth about $62,000. Finally, AXS Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $69,000. 99.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Natera Trading Up 5.3%

Natera stock opened at $213.94 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $30.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -131.25 and a beta of 1.57. Natera, Inc. has a 1-year low of $131.81 and a 1-year high of $256.36. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $201.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $215.63.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.46) by $0.81. The business had revenue of $665.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $600.68 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 9.05% and a negative return on equity of 14.74%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.41) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on NTRA. Robert W. Baird set a $265.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Natera in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. William Blair initiated coverage on Natera in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Finally, BTIG Research lowered their target price on shares of Natera from $260.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $256.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,838 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.14, for a total transaction of $1,191,769.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 150,769 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,777,983.66. The trade was a 3.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, 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. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,405 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.69, for a total value of $693,564.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 142,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at $28,984,068.55. This trade represents a 2.34% 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 41,356 shares of company stock valued at $8,374,584. 5.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.

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