Natera, Inc. $NTRA Shares Acquired by UBS Group AG

Key Points

• UBS Group AG lifted its stake in Natera by 19.4% in Q4, adding 71,355 shares to hold 438,857 shares (~0.32% of the company) valued at about $100.54 million, while institutional investors/hedge funds collectively own 99.90% of the stock.
• Natera beat quarterly estimates, reporting EPS of $0.35 versus a consensus (‑$0.46) and revenue of $665.5M versus $600.7M expected; analysts still view the stock as a "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $253.47 despite ongoing negative net margin.

UBS Group AG increased its position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 19.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 438,857 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 71,355 shares during the period. UBS Group AG owned approximately 0.32% of Natera worth $100,538,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 15,903 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,643,000 after acquiring an additional 2,086 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 1,066.8% in the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 3,302 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $756,000 after acquiring an additional 3,019 shares during the period. Calamos Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 42.3% in the 4th quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 8,222 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,884,000 after acquiring an additional 2,445 shares during the period. WPG Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 30.0% in the 4th quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 373 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $85,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the period. Finally, Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its holdings in Natera by 27.5% during the 4th quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 3,954 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $955,000 after buying an additional 852 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Natera Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NTRA opened at $207.28 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.50 billion, a P/E ratio of -135.48 and a beta of 1.57. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $202.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $214.03. Natera, Inc. has a twelve month low of $131.81 and a twelve month high of $256.36.

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, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.46) by $0.81. Natera had a negative return on equity of 15.28% and a negative net margin of 9.03%.The company had revenue of $665.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $600.68 million. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.41) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Natera, Inc. will post -1.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 6,939 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.83, for a total value of $1,580,912.37. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,120 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,874,499.60. This trade represents a 11.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Fesko sold 3,594 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.02, for a total value of $830,285.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 178,081 shares in the company, valued at $41,140,272.62. This trade represents a 1.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 138,069 shares of company stock valued at $30,896,634. 5.63% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on NTRA shares. William Blair started coverage on Natera in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Guggenheim increased their target price on Natera from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Natera from $239.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Natera in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Natera from $265.00 to $250.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Natera has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $253.47.

Natera 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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