Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Lowers Holdings in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Key Points

• Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its Natera stake by 26.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 16,829 shares and ending with 46,548 shares worth about $10.7 million.
• Natera reported better-than-expected first-quarter results, with EPS of $0.35 versus an estimated loss and revenue of $665.5 million versus expectations of $600.68 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains constructive: the stock carries a Moderate Buy consensus rating, with an average price target of $256.60, though several firms recently trimmed their targets slightly.

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans decreased its holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 26.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 46,548 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 16,829 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans' holdings in Natera were worth $10,664,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Natera by 9.4% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 11,628,914 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,871,914,000 after purchasing an additional 1,003,129 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Natera by 37.5% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,665,013 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $428,987,000 after purchasing an additional 727,366 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Natera by 39.0% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,400,065 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $386,338,000 after purchasing an additional 673,315 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Natera by 215.7% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 527,942 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $84,983,000 after purchasing an additional 360,733 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its holdings in Natera by 5,965.1% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 343,768 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $78,754,000 after purchasing an additional 338,100 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of Natera stock opened at $196.04 on Wednesday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $200.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $215.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -120.27 and a beta of 1.57. Natera, Inc. has a 12 month low of $131.81 and a 12 month high of $256.36.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.46) by $0.81. The business had revenue of $665.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $600.68 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 9.05% and a negative return on equity of 14.74%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.41) EPS. Analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. BTIG Research cut their price objective on shares of Natera from $260.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 11th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Natera from $265.00 to $250.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Natera from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $249.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $256.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,838 shares of Natera stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.14, for a total value of $1,191,769.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 150,769 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,777,983.66. The trade was a 3.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 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 Burkes Brophy sold 3,070 shares of Natera stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.74, for a total transaction of $594,781.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 58,291 shares in the company, valued at $11,293,298.34. The trade was a 5.00% 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 38,266 shares of company stock valued at $7,747,808. Insiders own 5.63% of the company's stock.

Natera 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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