Legal & General Group Plc Buys 27,136 Shares of Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc increased its Natera stake by 8.1% in the fourth quarter, buying 27,136 more shares and bringing its total holdings to 363,121 shares valued at about $83.2 million.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish on Natera, with an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $256.60. Recent calls included Piper Sandler at $249, Morgan Stanley at $250, and Robert W. Baird at $265.
• Natera’s recent momentum was supported by positive business updates, including a new collaboration using Signatera in a melanoma study and Canaccord’s price-target increase to $250 from $200. The stock was up 4.4% to $223.37, after reporting stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue.

Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 8.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 363,121 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 27,136 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.26% of Natera worth $83,187,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in NTRA. Horizon Investments LLC bought a new position in Natera in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new position in Natera in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased 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 worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. bought a new position in Natera in the 4th quarter worth about $62,000. Finally, AXS Investments LLC bought a new position in Natera in the 3rd quarter worth about $69,000. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. William Blair assumed coverage on Natera in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $249.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Natera from $265.00 to $250.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Robert W. Baird set a $265.00 target price on Natera in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. One equities research 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 given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Natera presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $256.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 1,652 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.84, for a total transaction of $335,091.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 140,643 shares in the company, valued at $28,528,026.12. This represents a 1.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through 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, 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 value of $185,956.32. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 149,867 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,896,580.72. This represents a 0.60% 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 quarter, insiders have sold 41,356 shares of company stock valued at $8,374,584. 5.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Natera News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Natera this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Natera announced a new collaboration with Diakonos Oncology to use Signatera in a Phase I/II study for refractory melanoma, expanding a key cancer-testing product into another clinical use case and reinforcing its oncology growth story. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Canaccord raised its price target on Natera to $250 from $200, signaling stronger confidence in the company’s outlook and helping fuel bullish sentiment. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Natera is also drawing attention from investors after commentary calling it a favorite stock idea for the rest of 2026, which adds to the momentum around the name. Article Title

Natera Trading Up 4.4%

NTRA opened at $223.37 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.99 billion, a P/E ratio of -137.04 and a beta of 1.57. Natera, Inc. has a 12-month low of $131.81 and a 12-month high of $256.36. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $202.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $215.69.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The company had revenue of $665.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $600.68 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 14.74% and a negative net margin of 9.05%.During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.41) EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

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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