Colonial River Investments LLC Invests $441,000 in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Colonial River Investments LLC 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 disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,122 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $441,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 50.3% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 657 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in Natera by 1,328.0% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 357 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the period. Teza Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Natera in the 4th quarter valued at about $221,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Natera by 1.5% in the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,417 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $766,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in Natera in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $248,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BTIG Research reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Natera from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Natera in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $251.00 target price for the company. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $184.63.

Insider Activity at Natera

In other news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 9,563 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.41, for a total transaction of $1,323,614.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,541 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,417,799.81. The trade was a 4.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.44, for a total transaction of $657,760.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,704 shares of the company's stock, valued at $937,965.76. This trade represents a 41.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 59,755 shares of company stock worth $8,898,589. Insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

Natera Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NTRA opened at $167.96 on Friday. Natera, Inc. has a 52-week low of $92.14 and a 52-week high of $183.00. The company has a market capitalization of $22.93 billion, a PE ratio of -114.26 and a beta of 1.74. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $158.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $158.59.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.50) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.59) by $0.09. Natera had a negative return on equity of 18.29% and a negative net margin of 10.36%. The firm had revenue of $501.83 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $446.68 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.56) EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 36.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities 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.

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