Fifth Third Bancorp Acquires 10,929 Shares of Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 3,373.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,253 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,929 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp's holdings in Natera were worth $2,251,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Coatue Management LLC lifted its stake in Natera by 1,446.1% in the fourth quarter. Coatue Management LLC now owns 2,633,334 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $603,270,000 after acquiring an additional 2,463,008 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Natera by 94.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,976,325 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,140,026,000 after purchasing an additional 2,420,263 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Natera in the 4th quarter worth $372,398,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Natera by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,854,334 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,944,800,000 after purchasing an additional 1,225,420 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Natera by 39.0% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,400,065 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $386,338,000 after purchasing an additional 673,315 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Roelof Botha sold 78,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.31, for a total transaction of $17,184,180.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,076,198 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $237,097,181.38. This represents a 6.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,405 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.69, for a total transaction of $693,564.45. Following the sale, the insider owned 142,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $28,984,068.55. This 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 three months, insiders sold 178,872 shares of company stock valued at $39,627,696. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Natera Stock Up 1.7%

NTRA stock opened at $267.18 on Wednesday. Natera, Inc. has a twelve month low of $131.81 and a twelve month high of $288.04. The firm has a market cap of $38.26 billion, a PE ratio of -163.91 and a beta of 1.51. The business has a 50 day moving average of $236.50 and a 200 day moving average of $220.83.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Natera from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on Natera from $285.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Natera in a report on Monday, July 6th. BTIG Research set a $275.00 target price on shares of Natera and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Natera presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $267.83.

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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