Eagle Health Investments LP Makes New Investment in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• Eagle Health Investments initiated a Natera position by purchasing 15,847 shares valued at approximately $4.3 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 99.9% of Natera’s outstanding stock.
• Analysts raised several price targets, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target of $319.38. Stephens and Citigroup increased their targets to $350 and $365, respectively.
• Natera’s shares traded near a one-year high at $325.07 after the company reported quarterly revenue of $752.75 million, up 37.7% year over year, while its adjusted loss per share was narrower than analysts expected.

Eagle Health Investments LP purchased a new stake in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 15,847 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $4,302,000. Natera makes up approximately 0.7% of Eagle Health Investments LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Natera by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,854,334 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $2,944,800,000 after buying an additional 1,225,420 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Natera in the second quarter worth about $2,962,770,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Natera by 94.7% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,976,325 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,140,026,000 after acquiring an additional 2,420,263 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Natera by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,389,599 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $545,624,000 after acquiring an additional 72,087 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coatue Management LLC lifted its holdings in Natera by 1,446.1% in the 4th quarter. Coatue Management LLC now owns 2,633,334 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $603,270,000 after acquiring an additional 2,463,008 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,410 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.58, for a total value of $905,627.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 129,019 shares in the company, valued at $34,264,866.02. This represents a 2.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 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, Director Roelof Botha sold 78,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.31, for a total value of $17,184,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,076,198 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $237,097,181.38. This trade represents a 6.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 181,045 shares of company stock worth $41,330,968. 5.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Natera from $305.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Natera from $315.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Leerink Partners set a $330.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 7th. BTIG Research upped their price target on Natera from $290.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Natera in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $260.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $319.38.

Natera Trading Up 4.3%

NASDAQ NTRA opened at $325.07 on Thursday. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $156.71 and a 1 year high of $326.03. The company has a market cap of $46.86 billion, a PE ratio of -239.02 and a beta of 1.51. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $269.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $228.01.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The medical research company reported ($0.47) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by $0.02. Natera had a negative net margin of 7.11% and a negative return on equity of 11.38%. The company had revenue of $752.75 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $661.24 million. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.74) earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 37.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Natera Profile

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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