Natera, Inc. $NTRA Shares Sold by Franklin Resources Inc.

Key Points

• Franklin Resources reduced its stake in Natera by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 130,460 shares and ending with 2.53 million shares worth about $580.6 million.
• Other large institutional holders also adjusted positions, with JPMorgan Chase increasing its Natera stake by 10.5% while several other funds made smaller additions. Institutional investors and hedge funds now own 99.90% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains mostly positive: Natera has a Moderate Buy consensus rating and an average price target of $256.12, though some firms recently trimmed targets or downgraded the stock.

Franklin Resources Inc. lowered its stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 4.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,534,553 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 130,460 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 1.83% of Natera worth $580,641,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of NTRA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,854,334 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,944,800,000 after acquiring an additional 1,225,420 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 2.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,389,599 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $545,624,000 after purchasing an additional 72,087 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,608,644 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $596,078,000 after purchasing an additional 11,689 shares during the last quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Natera by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 2,451,779 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $394,663,000 after purchasing an additional 41,303 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Natera by 39.0% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,400,065 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $386,338,000 after purchasing an additional 673,315 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on NTRA shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Natera in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, May 8th. BTIG Research lowered their price objective on shares of Natera from $260.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Natera from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Natera from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Natera presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $256.12.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NTRA opened at $213.47 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $30.57 billion, a PE ratio of -130.96 and a beta of 1.56. The company's 50 day moving average price is $204.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $216.13. Natera, Inc. has a 52 week low of $131.81 and a 52 week high of $256.36.

Insider Activity at Natera

In related news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 482 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.49, for a total transaction of $101,456.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 57,496 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,102,333.04. This trade represents a 0.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 3,000 shares of Natera stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.43, for a total value of $655,290.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 137,643 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,065,360.49. The trade was a 2.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 148,500 shares of company stock worth $32,274,898. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NTRA? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.