Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Purchases Shares of 121,350 Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 121,350 shares of the medical research company's stock, valued at approximately $19,210,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned approximately 0.09% of Natera at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Natera by 50.3% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 657 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $104,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Natera during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,894,000. SYM FINANCIAL Corp purchased a new position in shares of Natera during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $256,000. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Natera by 753.8% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 27,551 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $4,361,000 after buying an additional 24,324 shares during the period. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Natera by 1,328.0% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 357 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 332 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company's stock.

Natera Stock Down 1.2%

NASDAQ:NTRA traded down $1.93 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $156.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,767,726 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,404,608. The company has a market capitalization of $21.32 billion, a P/E ratio of -88.70 and a beta of 1.79. Natera, Inc. has a 12 month low of $92.14 and a 12 month high of $183.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a current ratio of 4.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $149.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $158.37.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.50) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.59) by $0.09. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. The firm had revenue of $501.83 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $446.68 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.56) earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 36.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other Natera news, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.61, for a total value of $606,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 9,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,471,223.44. This represents a 29.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider John Fesko sold 343 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.55, for a total transaction of $49,923.65. Following the sale, the insider now owns 156,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,843,490.30. This represents a 0.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 152,436 shares of company stock valued at $22,019,079 in the last ninety days. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on NTRA. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Natera from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Natera from $211.00 to $218.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on Natera in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $251.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $182.12.

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.