Natera, Inc. $NTRA Shares Sold by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in Natera, Inc. by 6.9%, selling 5,526 shares and holding approximately 0.06% of the company, valued at $10.58 million at the end of the first quarter.
• Insider transactions show that key executives, including CFO Michael Burkes Brophy, sold a substantial number of shares, with insiders selling a total of 58,705 shares valued at $8.74 million over the last three months.
• Analysts have mixed views on Natera's stock, with Royal Bank Of Canada raising the target price from $251 to $255 while Wall Street Zen downgraded the stock from "hold" to "sell," indicating varying levels of confidence among experts.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 6.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 74,801 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 5,526 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Natera worth $10,578,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NTRA. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in Natera during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in Natera during the first quarter valued at $29,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its position in Natera by 117.8% during the first quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 220 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC bought a new position in Natera during the first quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Natera by 114.8% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 232 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 3,045 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.40, for a total transaction of $418,383.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 65,430 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,990,082. This represents a 4.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,807 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.88, for a total transaction of $771,634.16. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 163,593 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,738,237.84. The trade was a 3.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 49,594 shares of company stock valued at $7,312,528. 5.63% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of NTRA stock traded up $0.37 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $168.25. 773,706 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,518,897. The stock has a market cap of $23.09 billion, a P/E ratio of -88.09 and a beta of 1.68. The stock's fifty day moving average is $154.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $153.80. Natera, Inc. has a 52-week low of $110.57 and a 52-week high of $183.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last released 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). The firm had revenue of $546.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $476.84 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 12.89% and a negative return on equity of 22.22%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 32.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.30) earnings per share. Natera has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on NTRA shares. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $183.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $210.00 target price (up from $190.00) on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Natera to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $170.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $251.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and seventeen have given a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $193.19.

About Natera

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.