Insider Selling: Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) CEO Sells 5,623 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• CEO sale: Natera CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,623 shares on March 10 at an average price of $204.13 for roughly $1.148M, reducing his stake to 156,607 shares (a 3.47% ownership drop) — part of a recent pattern of large insider sales including 85,299 shares on Feb 2 and 71,932 on Jan 20.
• Mixed fundamentals and analyst view: Natera beat the quarter with $0.35 EPS (vs. -$0.46 est.) and $665.5M revenue (vs. $600.7M est.) but still shows negative margins and a negative yearly EPS outlook; the stock dipped to $196.61 and carries a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $253.47.

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,623 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.13, for a total transaction of $1,147,822.99. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 156,607 shares in the company, valued at $31,968,186.91. This trade represents a 3.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Steven Leonard Chapman also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, March 2nd, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 3,950 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.02, for a total value of $790,079.00.
• On Tuesday, February 3rd, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 4,725 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.77, for a total value of $1,090,388.25.
• On Monday, February 2nd, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 85,299 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.72, for a total transaction of $19,680,185.28.
• On Wednesday, January 28th, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 3,648 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.66, for a total value of $866,983.68.
• On Tuesday, January 27th, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 2,322 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.53, for a total value of $558,510.66.
• On Wednesday, January 21st, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 1,590 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total transaction of $373,650.00.
• On Tuesday, January 20th, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 71,932 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.74, for a total transaction of $16,885,317.68.
• On Friday, January 2nd, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 3,848 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.08, for a total value of $881,499.84.

Natera Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NTRA traded down $2.34 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $196.61. 1,404,465 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,084,721. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $125.38 and a fifty-two week high of $256.36. The company has a market cap of $27.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -128.50 and a beta of 1.65. The firm's fifty day moving average is $221.32 and its 200 day moving average is $206.07.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.46) by $0.81. Natera had a negative net margin of 9.03% and a negative return on equity of 15.28%. The business had revenue of $665.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $600.68 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.41) earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Natera in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $300.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Natera from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Natera from $239.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Natera from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price objective on Natera from $197.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $253.47.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Reflection Asset Management bought a new stake in Natera during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Palladiem LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 103.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 163 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Natera during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Natera during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Natera Company 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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