Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $38.02 Million Stake in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management S.A. sold 205,730 shares of Natera, reducing its stake by 47.8% and leaving it with a total of 225,038 shares valued at approximately $38 million.
• Several hedge funds, including Quantinno Capital and Mackenzie Financial Corp, have recently changed their positions in Natera, indicating a strong interest from institutional investors who own 99.90% of the company's stock.
• Natera's latest quarterly earnings report revealed a revenue increase of 32.2% year-over-year, despite a loss per share of ($0.74), which was below analysts’ expectations.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lessened its stake in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 47.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 225,038 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 205,730 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.16% of Natera worth $38,018,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Natera by 30.8% during the first quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,986 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $308,000 after acquiring an additional 468 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank increased its stake in shares of Natera by 9.8% during the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 8,293 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,173,000 after acquiring an additional 740 shares during the period. Comerica Bank increased its stake in shares of Natera by 24.1% during the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 141,106 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $19,954,000 after acquiring an additional 27,379 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Natera by 32.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 848 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $120,000 after buying an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Natera in the first quarter worth approximately $6,753,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NTRA has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $183.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $210.00 price target (up previously from $190.00) on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 8th. 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, July 28th. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $220.00 price target (up previously from $210.00) on shares of Natera in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Natera in a research note on Monday. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $175.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $192.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other Natera news, Director Rowan E. Chapman sold 2,750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.99, for a total value of $459,222.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,015 shares in the company, valued at $1,004,444.85. The trade was a 31.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,079 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.53, for a total transaction of $845,805.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 158,514 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,397,336.42. This trade represents a 3.10% 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 in the last 90 days. 5.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Natera Trading Down 1.1%

NTRA traded down $1.92 during trading on Monday, hitting $179.19. The stock had a trading volume of 1,414,145 shares, compared to its average volume of 891,184. The firm has a market cap of $24.59 billion, a PE ratio of -93.82 and a beta of 1.68. Natera, Inc. has a 12 month low of $117.27 and a 12 month high of $183.00. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $157.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $155.46.

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

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.