Comerica Bank Acquires 27,379 Shares of Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• Comerica Bank increased its stake in Natera, Inc. by 24.1%, acquiring an additional 27,379 shares, bringing its total to 141,106 shares valued at approximately $19.95 million.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Buy" for Natera, with target prices ranging from $183.00 to $220.00 across several brokerages.
• Natera reported a revenue of $546.60 million for the recent quarter, up 32.2% year-over-year, but missed earnings expectations, posting an EPS of ($0.74).

Comerica Bank lifted its holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 24.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 141,106 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 27,379 shares during the period. Comerica Bank owned about 0.10% of Natera worth $19,954,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NTRA. Fulton Bank N.A. grew its holdings in Natera by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 3,652 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $516,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. grew its holdings in Natera by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 1,914 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Natera by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,417 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $766,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Natera by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,737 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $246,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridges Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Natera by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,676 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $237,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on NTRA. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $210.00 price target (up from $190.00) on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, August 8th. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, August 8th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Natera from $211.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $183.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $220.00 target price (up from $210.00) on shares of Natera in a research note on Monday, August 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and seventeen have given a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $193.19.

Insider Transactions at Natera

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 shares were sold at an average price of $137.40, for a total value of $418,383.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 65,430 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,990,082. This represents a 4.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,807 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.88, for a total transaction of $771,634.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 163,593 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,738,237.84. The trade was a 3.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 58,705 shares of company stock worth $8,743,776. Insiders own 5.63% of the company's stock.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NTRA opened at $162.47 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $154.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $153.94. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $110.57 and a fifty-two week high of $183.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.30 billion, a PE ratio of -85.06 and a beta of 1.76.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.74) earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $546.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $476.84 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.30) EPS. Natera's revenue for the quarter was up 32.2% on a year-over-year basis. Natera has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

About Natera

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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