Fred Alger Management LLC Sells 994,184 Shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Fred Alger Management LLC cut its holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 24.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. 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 largest position. Fred Alger Management LLC owned approximately 2.29% of Natera worth $477,720,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on NTRA shares. BTIG Research reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Guggenheim increased their price target on Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on Natera in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $251.00 price objective for the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Natera from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Natera from $211.00 to $218.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $181.82.

Natera Trading Down 3.4%

NASDAQ NTRA traded down $5.29 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $152.00. The stock had a trading volume of 1,026,804 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,387,329. 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 market capitalization of $20.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -86.36 and a beta of 1.79. Natera, Inc. has a one year low of $92.14 and a one year high of $183.00. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $147.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $156.18.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.50) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $446.68 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.56) earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 36.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 87,272 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total transaction of $12,514,804.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 203,354 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,160,963.60. This trade represents a 30.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider John Fesko sold 343 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.55, for a total transaction of $49,923.65. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 156,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,843,490.30. The trade was a 0.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 152,436 shares of company stock valued at $22,019,079. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

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.