K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc Takes $2.03 Million Position in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• K.J. Harrison & Partners initiated a new stake in Natera, purchasing 8,850 shares worth about $2.03 million, and institutional investors now own roughly 99.9% of the company.
• Natera posted a quarterly beat—$0.35 EPS and $665.5M revenue versus consensus estimates—and analyst sentiment is generally constructive with an average price target around $253.47.
• Fundamental risks remain: Natera reports a negative net margin and ROE and analysts model a negative EPS for the year, while insiders have recently sold shares under pre‑arranged Rule 10b5‑1 plans to cover tax obligations.

K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc purchased a new stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 8,850 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $2,027,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Horizon Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera in the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its position in Natera by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 270 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. bought a new stake in Natera in the fourth quarter worth $62,000. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Key Natera News

Here are the key news stories impacting Natera this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly results beat expectations: Natera reported $0.35 EPS and $665.5M revenue, well above consensus — this outperformance supports upside in the stock. Earnings and company page
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support is generally constructive: several firms have recent Buy/Outperform notes and the consensus target (~$253.47) sits above current levels, which can attract momentum buyers. Analyst coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional inflows noted (new/expanded stakes by firms such as Robinhood Asset Management and JPMorgan), indicating larger investors remain interested in the growth story. Institutional holdings
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple insiders (CEO Steven Chapman, CFO Michael Brophy, John Fesko, Solomon Moshkevich) sold shares in early May under pre‑arranged Rule 10b5‑1 plans to cover tax withholding on vesting awards; these are scheduled, limited reductions rather than opportunistic dumps. Insider trades summary
• Negative Sentiment: Fundamentals still show profitability headwinds: Natera reports a negative net margin and negative ROE, and analysts model a negative EPS for the fiscal year, which leaves valuation and path‑to‑sustained profitability as open risks. Financial metrics and estimates

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Natera from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 18th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Natera from $239.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Natera from $265.00 to $250.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Natera from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Monday, January 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $253.47.

Natera Stock Performance

Natera stock opened at $215.09 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $202.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $214.75. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $131.81 and a fifty-two week high of $256.36. The company has a market capitalization of $30.61 billion, a PE ratio of -140.58 and a beta of 1.57.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $665.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $600.68 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 15.28% and a negative net margin of 9.03%.During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.41) earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other Natera news, insider John Fesko sold 291 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 $59,992.56. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 187,220 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $38,597,275.20. This represents a 0.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed 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, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,405 shares of the 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 directly owned 142,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $28,984,068.55. The trade was a 2.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 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 have sold 38,266 shares of company stock valued at $7,747,808. Insiders own 5.63% of the company's stock.

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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