GW&K Investment Management LLC Has $55.89 Million Position in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• GW&K Investment Management cut its Natera stake by 41% in the fourth quarter, but still held 243,967 shares valued at about $55.9 million at quarter-end.
• Other institutions mostly added to their positions, and institutional ownership remains extremely high at 99.9% of Natera’s shares.
• Wall Street sentiment is largely positive, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $256.12, though insider selling has been notable recently, including sales by the CEO and a director.

GW&K Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 41.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 243,967 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 169,507 shares during the period. GW&K Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.18% of Natera worth $55,892,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NTRA. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Natera by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 11,321 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,594,000 after buying an additional 781 shares during the period. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd increased its position in shares of Natera by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd now owns 5,700 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,306,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 77.5% during the fourth quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC now owns 3,590 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $822,000 after acquiring an additional 1,567 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 115,275 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $26,408,000 after acquiring an additional 5,812 shares during the period. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in Natera by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 144,154 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $33,024,000 after acquiring an additional 6,954 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on NTRA shares. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $249.00 target price on shares of Natera in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. BTIG Research reduced their price objective on Natera from $260.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Natera from $265.00 to $250.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. William Blair started coverage on Natera in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $256.12.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other news, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.21, for a total value of $2,389,310.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,183 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,343,009.43. This represents a 64.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 41,124 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.03, for a total transaction of $9,089,637.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 108,743 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,035,465.29. This represents a 27.44% 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 159,500 shares of company stock valued at $34,664,208. 5.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NTRA opened at $222.82 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -136.70 and a beta of 1.56. The business has a 50-day moving average of $205.34 and a 200-day moving average of $216.16. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $131.81 and a fifty-two week high of $256.36.

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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