Sterling Capital Management LLC Sells 9,491 Shares of Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• Sterling Capital Management reduced its Natera position by 9.4%, selling 9,491 shares during the third quarter and retaining 91,154 shares worth approximately $37.7 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 99.9% of Natera.
• Analysts remain broadly optimistic, with Natera receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $379.20. Recent targets range as high as $500.
• Natera shares traded at $403.95, near their 12-month high of $437.41. The company’s latest quarterly revenue rose 37.7% year over year to $752.75 million, while its EPS loss of $0.47 beat estimates.

Sterling Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 9.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 91,154 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 9,491 shares during the period. Natera comprises approximately 0.8% of Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Sterling Capital Management LLC owned 0.06% of Natera worth $37,675,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Natera by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 815 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $337,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 5.5% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 905 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $181,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 48.5% in the second quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 150 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Corp lifted its position in shares of Natera by 5.5% in the first quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 982 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $196,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Purus Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Natera by 5.3% in the third quarter. Purus Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,135 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $469,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NTRA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage on Natera in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. They set a "buy" rating and a $385.00 price objective for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Natera from $375.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Natera from $355.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $340.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, Leerink Partners set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $379.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In related news, insider John Fesko sold 6,517 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $321.53, for a total value of $2,095,411.01. Following the transaction, the insider owned 197,257 shares in the company, valued at approximately $63,424,043.21. This trade represents a 3.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible 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, CFO Michael Brophy sold 478 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.22, for a total transaction of $131,077.16. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 51,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,159,898.14. This trade 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 sold a total of 52,985 shares of company stock worth $16,119,137 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 5.05% of the company's stock.

Natera Price Performance

NASDAQ:NTRA traded up $2.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $403.95. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,101,763 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,654,882. The stock has a market cap of $58.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -297.02 and a beta of 1.50. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $367.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $282.37. Natera, Inc. has a twelve month low of $181.00 and a twelve month high of $437.41.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The medical research company reported ($0.47) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.49) by $0.02. The company had revenue of $752.75 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $661.24 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 7.11% and a negative return on equity of 11.38%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 37.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.74) EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Natera Profile

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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