Natera, Inc. $NTRA Shares Sold by Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS

Key Points

• Kornitzer Capital Management cut its Natera stake by 70.3% in the first quarter, selling 35,088 shares and leaving it with 14,841 shares worth about $2.97 million.
• Despite that sale, institutional ownership remains extremely high, with 99.9% of Natera’s stock held by institutional investors and hedge funds; several large firms, including JPMorgan and Wellington, increased their positions.
• Wall Street sentiment is mostly positive: Natera has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $265.33, while the stock recently traded near $269.95 after a pullback on the day.

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lessened its stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 70.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 14,841 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 35,088 shares during the quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS's holdings in Natera were worth $2,968,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Natera by 10.5% during 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 in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 94.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,976,325 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,140,026,000 after purchasing an additional 2,420,263 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Natera by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,389,599 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $545,624,000 after purchasing an additional 72,087 shares during the last quarter. Coatue Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Natera by 1,446.1% during the 4th quarter. Coatue Management LLC now owns 2,633,334 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $603,270,000 after purchasing an additional 2,463,008 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake 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 worth $596,078,000 after purchasing an additional 11,689 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on NTRA shares. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of Natera in a report on Monday, July 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $265.00 price target on Natera in a report on Friday, May 8th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $249.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Natera in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, BTIG Research set a $275.00 target price on Natera and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Natera presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $265.33.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of Natera stock traded down $11.90 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $269.95. The company had a trading volume of 969,702 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,642,286. The company's 50-day moving average is $227.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $219.09. The company has a market cap of $38.66 billion, a P/E ratio of -165.61 and a beta of 1.51. Natera, Inc. has a twelve month low of $131.81 and a twelve month high of $288.04.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other Natera news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 41,124 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.03, for a total transaction of $9,089,637.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 108,743 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,035,465.29. This trade represents a 27.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.90, for a total value of $818,700.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 134,643 shares in the company, valued at $36,744,074.70. This trade represents a 2.18% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 178,872 shares of company stock valued at $39,627,696 over the last quarter. 5.05% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.