Fred Alger Management LLC Lowers Stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Fred Alger Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 24.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,017,816 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 994,184 shares during the quarter. Natera accounts for approximately 2.3% of Fred Alger Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Fred Alger Management LLC owned approximately 2.29% of Natera worth $477,720,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NTRA. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Natera by 104.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Natera by 372.9% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 331 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 261 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. increased its position in Natera by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in Natera by 1,328.0% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 357 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the period. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in Natera by 55.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 434 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 2,562 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.41, for a total value of $354,606.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 75,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,457,844.37. The trade was a 3.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.29, for a total transaction of $859,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 143,768 shares in the company, valued at $20,600,516.72. This trade represents a 4.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 152,436 shares of company stock valued at $22,019,079. 7.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Natera Stock Up 3.5%

Natera stock traded up $5.34 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $157.29. The stock had a trading volume of 1,935,422 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,388,529. The company has a market capitalization of $21.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -89.37 and a beta of 1.79. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $147.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $155.90. Natera, Inc. has a one year low of $92.14 and a one year high of $183.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.23.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NTRA. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Natera from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. StockNews.com raised shares of Natera from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Natera in a report on Thursday, March 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $251.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Natera currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $181.82.

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.