M&T Bank Corp Increases Stock Position in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• M&T Bank boosted its stake in Natera by 432.6%, acquiring 29,680 shares during the 4th quarter worth about $6.8 million.
• Natera beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates (EPS $0.35 vs. -$0.46 est.; revenue $665.5M vs. $600.7M) but still reported negative net margin and ROE, while analysts hold a “Moderate Buy” consensus with a $253.47 average price target (Guggenheim lifted its target to $270).
• Insiders have been net sellers recently—selling 138,257 shares (~$31.47M) in the last three months—while institutional ownership remains extremely high at about 99.90%.

M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 432.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,680 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 24,107 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp's holdings in Natera were worth $6,799,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Horizon Investments LLC acquired a new position in Natera during the third quarter worth $32,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Natera in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Natera in the third quarter valued at $46,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in Natera by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 270 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Natera during the 4th quarter worth $62,000. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Natera Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NTRA stock opened at $203.75 on Friday. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $131.81 and a fifty-two week high of $256.36. The stock has a market cap of $28.88 billion, a P/E ratio of -133.17 and a beta of 1.68. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $202.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $213.21.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.46) by $0.81. The business had revenue of $665.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $600.68 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 9.03% and a negative return on equity of 15.28%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.41) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on NTRA. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Natera from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 18th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, William Blair began coverage on shares of Natera in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $253.47.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 6,939 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.83, for a total value of $1,580,912.37. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 52,120 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,874,499.60. This represents a 11.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.44, for a total transaction of $694,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 139,486 shares in the company, valued at $32,282,639.84. This represents a 2.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 138,257 shares of company stock worth $31,468,797. 5.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.

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