JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd Invests $5 Million in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd initiated a new position in Natera during the fourth quarter, buying 20,900 shares valued at about $5 million.
• Natera’s latest earnings topped expectations, with $0.35 EPS versus an expected loss, and revenue of $665.5 million beating estimates of $600.68 million.
• Analysts remain generally bullish on the stock, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $256.60, while insiders have recently sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 20,900 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $4,997,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Horizon Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Natera during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Natera during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its stake in Natera by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 270 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. acquired a new position in Natera in the 4th quarter valued at $62,000. Finally, AXS Investments LLC acquired a new position in Natera in the 3rd quarter valued at $69,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of Natera stock opened at $213.94 on Friday. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $131.81 and a fifty-two week high of $256.36. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $201.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $215.63. The company has a market cap of $30.64 billion, a PE ratio of -131.25 and a beta of 1.57.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.46) by $0.81. Natera had a negative net margin of 9.05% and a negative return on equity of 14.74%. The business had revenue of $665.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $600.68 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.41) earnings per share. Analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Natera

In related news, insider John Fesko sold 1,438 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.84, for a total value of $291,683.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 185,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,684,020.88. This trade represents a 0.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 902 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.16, for a total transaction of $185,956.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 149,867 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,896,580.72. The trade was a 0.60% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 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. Insiders have sold a total of 41,356 shares of company stock worth $8,374,584 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 5.63% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NTRA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $249.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Natera from $265.00 to $250.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. BTIG Research lowered their target price on shares of Natera from $260.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Natera from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $270.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, May 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $256.60.

Natera Company 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.