SEB Asset Management AB Acquires Shares of 85,074 Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• SEB Asset Management AB opened a new position in Natera during the first quarter, buying 85,074 shares valued at about $17.0 million.
• Institutional interest in Natera remains very high, with hedge funds and asset managers making large additions and 99.90% of the stock reportedly held by institutions and hedge funds.
• Wall Street analysts are generally constructive on the stock: Natera has a Moderate Buy consensus rating and an average target price of $267.83, though a few firms recently issued downgrades.

SEB Asset Management AB bought a new position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 85,074 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $17,014,000. SEB Asset Management AB owned about 0.06% of Natera at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Coatue Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Natera by 1,446.1% in the fourth quarter. Coatue Management LLC now owns 2,633,334 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $603,270,000 after purchasing an additional 2,463,008 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Natera by 94.7% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,976,325 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,140,026,000 after buying an additional 2,420,263 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Natera during the fourth quarter worth $372,398,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Natera by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,854,334 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,944,800,000 after buying an additional 1,225,420 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings 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 valued at $386,338,000 after buying an additional 673,315 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on NTRA shares. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Natera from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. William Blair started coverage on shares of Natera in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Zacks Research cut shares of Natera from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Natera from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $267.83.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $262.63 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.61 billion, a PE ratio of -161.12 and a beta of 1.51. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $131.81 and a 1 year high of $288.04. The firm's 50-day moving average is $235.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $220.56.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other Natera news, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.21, for a total transaction of $2,389,310.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 6,183 shares in the company, valued at $1,343,009.43. This represents a 64.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 41,124 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.03, for a total transaction of $9,089,637.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 108,743 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,035,465.29. This represents a 27.44% 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 ninety days, insiders have sold 178,872 shares of company stock valued at $39,627,696. 5.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Natera Company Profile

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.

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