Natera, Inc. $NTRA Stock: Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Cuts Position

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. decreased its holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 37.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 156,996 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 93,873 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.11% of Natera worth $64,888,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NTRA. Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new position in Natera in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Natera in the second quarter worth about $30,000. Continuum Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Natera in the second quarter valued at $33,000. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Natera during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Natera in the second quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on NTRA shares. Stephens upped 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. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Natera in a research report on Friday, June 26th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $310.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Natera from $249.00 to $363.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Zacks Research upgraded Natera from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Natera in a report on Thursday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $368.69.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider owned 106,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $44,285,917.08. This represents a 2.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Michael Brophy sold 478 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.22, for a total transaction of $131,077.16. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 51,637 shares in the company, valued at $14,159,898.14. This represents a 0.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 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. Insiders have sold a total of 52,985 shares of company stock worth $16,119,137 over the last 90 days. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Natera Stock Down 2.8%

Shares of NTRA stock opened at $393.44 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $358.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $275.25. Natera, Inc. has a one year low of $178.01 and a one year high of $437.41.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The medical research company reported ($0.47) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $661.24 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.74) EPS. The firm's revenue was up 37.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Natera

Natera, Inc is a diagnostics company that develops and commercializes molecular testing services designed to assess genetic and disease-related risks. The company uses technologies including cell-free DNA analysis and next-generation sequencing to support clinical decision-making in reproductive health, oncology and organ transplantation.

Its reproductive health offerings include Panorama, a noninvasive prenatal test that screens for certain chromosomal conditions, and Horizon, a carrier screening test that evaluates whether prospective parents carry genetic variants associated with inherited disorders.

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