Natera, Inc. $NTRA Shares Purchased by AQR Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Natera, Inc. by 26.3%, holding over 1.19 million shares valued at approximately $165 million.
• The stock received multiple price target updates from analysts, including a new target of $268 from Royal Bank of Canada, indicating a positive outlook.
• Despite a missed earnings estimate for the last quarter, Natera reported a revenue increase of 32.2% year-over-year, amounting to $546.6 million.

AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 26.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,193,981 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 248,470 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.88% of Natera worth $165,074,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NTRA. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Natera by 30.8% during the first quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,986 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $308,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank raised its stake in shares of Natera by 9.8% during the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 8,293 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,173,000 after purchasing an additional 740 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Natera by 32.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 848 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $120,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the period. Comerica Bank raised its stake in shares of Natera by 24.1% during the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 141,106 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $19,954,000 after purchasing an additional 27,379 shares during the period. Finally, Teza Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Natera during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NTRA. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $268.00 price objective on shares of Natera and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $220.00 price target (up previously from $210.00) on shares of Natera in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Natera from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 17th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research note on Sunday, August 10th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $211.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $194.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 2,496 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.17, for a total value of $332,392.32. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,763 shares in the company, valued at $767,458.71. This represents a 30.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,807 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.88, for a total value of $771,634.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 163,593 shares in the company, valued at $21,738,237.84. This represents a 3.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,344 shares of company stock worth $7,771,750. 5.63% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NTRA opened at $167.53 on Thursday. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $110.57 and a 1 year high of $183.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $154.38 and a 200-day moving average of $153.97. The company has a market cap of $22.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -87.71 and a beta of 1.68.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.74) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.60) by ($0.14). Natera had a negative return on equity of 22.22% and a negative net margin of 12.89%.The business had revenue of $546.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $476.84 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.30) earnings per share. Natera's revenue was up 32.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Natera has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Analysts predict that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

Natera Company Profile

Natera, Inc, a diagnostics company, develops and commercializes molecular testing services worldwide. Its products include Panorama, a non-invasive prenatal test that screens for chromosomal abnormalities of a fetus, as well as in twin pregnancies; Horizon carrier screening test for individuals and couples determine if they are carriers of genetic variations that cause certain genetic conditions; Vistara single-gene NIPT screens for 25 single-gene disorders that cause severe skeletal, cardiac, and neurological conditions; Spectrum, preimplantation genetic tests for couples undergoing IVF; Anora that analyzes miscarriage tissue from women; Empower, a hereditary cancer screening test; and non-invasive prenatal paternity product, which allows a couple to establish paternity without waiting for the child to be born.

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