Natera, Inc. $NTRA Shares Sold by Leeward Financial Partners LLC

Key Points

• Leeward Financial Partners reduced its Natera stake by 16.7% in the third quarter, selling 3,262 shares and retaining 16,291 shares valued at approximately $6.7 million. Institutional investors collectively own 99.9% of Natera’s stock.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $379.20; several firms recently raised their targets to as high as $480.
• Natera reported quarterly revenue of $752.75 million, up 37.7% year over year, and an adjusted loss of $0.47 per share that beat estimates. The stock opened at $403.95, near its 52-week high of $437.41.

Leeward Financial Partners LLC decreased its position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,291 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 3,262 shares during the period. Natera makes up 1.8% of Leeward Financial Partners LLC's holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Leeward Financial Partners LLC's holdings in Natera were worth $6,733,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Natera in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,962,770,000. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc acquired a new stake in Natera during the second quarter worth approximately $5,117,000. Abbot Financial Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Natera during the second quarter worth approximately $1,537,000. Eagle Health Investments LP bought a new position in Natera during the 2nd quarter worth $4,302,000. Finally, BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd bought a new position in Natera during the 2nd quarter worth $11,695,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Stephens lifted their price objective on Natera from $305.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Natera from $249.00 to $363.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Natera from $340.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Guggenheim raised their price target on Natera from $360.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Natera from $220.00 to $284.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Natera presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $379.20.

Natera Stock Performance

NASDAQ NTRA opened at $403.95 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -297.02 and a beta of 1.50. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $367.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $282.92. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $181.00 and a 1 year high of $437.41.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The medical research company reported ($0.47) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.49) by $0.02. Natera had a negative net margin of 7.11% and a negative return on equity of 11.38%. The business had revenue of $752.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $661.24 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.74) earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 37.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Natera news, insider John Fesko sold 6,517 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $321.53, for a total value of $2,095,411.01. Following the sale, the insider owned 197,257 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $63,424,043.21. This trade represents a 3.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed 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 Thursday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $414.22, for a total value of $1,242,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 106,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,285,917.08. The trade was a 2.73% 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 48,221 shares of company stock worth $14,878,163. 5.05% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Natera

Natera, Inc is a diagnostics company that develops and commercializes molecular testing services designed to provide personalized genetic and genomic information. Its tests are used across reproductive health, oncology and organ transplantation, with the company combining next-generation sequencing and bioinformatics to analyze DNA and monitor disease-related signals.

In reproductive health, Natera offers Panorama noninvasive prenatal screening, Horizon carrier screening and Vistara single-gene disorder screening.

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