Natera, Inc. $NTRA Shares Acquired by Sit Investment Associates Inc.

Key Points

• Sit Investment Associates Inc. increased its stake in Natera, Inc. by 10.2% in Q1 2023, now holding 19,095 shares valued at approximately $2.7 million.
• Recent insider activities saw Solomon Moshkevich and CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sell shares, decreasing their holdings by 0.70% and 4.45% respectively.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Natera, with UBS raising the target price to $218.00 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $193.19.

Sit Investment Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 10.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 19,095 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 1,775 shares during the quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc.'s holdings in Natera were worth $2,700,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NTRA. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Natera during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in Natera during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in Natera by 117.8% in the 1st quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 220 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Natera during the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC increased its stake in Natera by 114.8% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 232 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NTRA. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $210.00 price objective (up previously from $190.00) on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Evercore ISI upgraded Natera to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $170.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $195.00 target price on shares of Natera in a report on Sunday, August 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $220.00 price target (up from $210.00) on shares of Natera in a report on Monday, August 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Natera has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $193.19.

Natera Trading Up 2.0%

NTRA stock traded up $3.1890 during trading on Thursday, reaching $163.8290. The stock had a trading volume of 311,501 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,515,000. The firm has a market cap of $22.49 billion, a PE ratio of -85.79 and a beta of 1.76. Natera, Inc. has a 52 week low of $110.57 and a 52 week high of $183.00. The stock's 50 day moving average is $154.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $154.48.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.74) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.60) by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $546.60 million during 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 32.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.30) earnings per share. Natera has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 3,045 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $8,990,082. The trade was a 4.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.07, for a total transaction of $471,210.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 133,205 shares in the company, valued at $20,922,509.35. This trade represents a 2.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 61,792 shares of company stock worth $9,227,972. Corporate insiders own 5.63% of the company's stock.

Natera Company Profile

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.