SWS Partners Reduces Stake in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• SWS Partners reduced its stake in Natera, Inc. by 10.8% in the second quarter, owning a total of 42,057 shares valued at approximately $7.1 million.
• Natera reported a net loss of ($0.74) earnings per share for the last quarter, missing analyst expectations, despite a revenue increase of 32.2% year-over-year.
• Multiple hedge funds have recently increased their positions in Natera, with 99.90% of the company's stock now owned by institutional investors.

SWS Partners trimmed its stake in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 10.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,057 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 5,097 shares during the period. Natera makes up 1.9% of SWS Partners' investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. SWS Partners' holdings in Natera were worth $7,105,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 30.8% during the first quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,986 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $308,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 9.8% during the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 8,293 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,173,000 after purchasing an additional 740 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Natera during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,525,000. Comerica Bank raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 24.1% during the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 141,106 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $19,954,000 after purchasing an additional 27,379 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 32.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 848 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $120,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Natera Price Performance

NTRA opened at $162.97 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $158.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.18. Natera, Inc. has a 1-year low of $117.27 and a 1-year high of $183.00. The firm has a market cap of $22.37 billion, a P/E ratio of -85.32 and a beta of 1.68.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last issued 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). Natera had a negative return on equity of 22.22% and a negative net margin of 12.89%.The company had revenue of $546.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $476.84 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.30) EPS. Natera's revenue was up 32.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Natera has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.77, for a total transaction of $500,310.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 130,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,714,287.85. This represents a 2.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,299 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.36, for a total transaction of $719,480.64. Following the transaction, the director owned 8,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,358,628.48. This represents a 34.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 56,423 shares of company stock valued at $8,459,656 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 5.63% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NTRA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $210.00 target price (up from $190.00) on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Natera in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $175.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $220.00 price target (up from $210.00) on shares of Natera in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $183.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $192.88.

Natera 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.

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