Lord Abbett & CO. LLC Lowers Stock Position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Lord Abbett & CO. LLC trimmed its holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA - Free Report) by 81.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,440,435 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 6,424,796 shares during the quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC owned about 1.09% of Natera worth $228,021,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Natera during the 3rd quarter worth $385,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Natera by 42.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,099,335 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $144,958,000 after purchasing an additional 328,375 shares during the last quarter. Exome Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Natera by 20.4% in the 3rd quarter. Exome Asset Management LLC now owns 22,450 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $2,850,000 after buying an additional 3,800 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Natera by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,012,498 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $128,537,000 after buying an additional 28,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Natera by 345.8% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In related news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,886 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.60, for a total transaction of $333,067.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 101,811 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,979,822.60. This trade represents a 1.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.77, for a total value of $117,861.51. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 156,044 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $27,739,941.88. This represents a 0.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 174,080 shares of company stock worth $26,473,363 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

Natera Stock Down 2.8 %

NASDAQ NTRA traded down $4.30 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $150.59. 312,118 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,375,360. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $147.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $153.88. The stock has a market cap of $20.36 billion, a P/E ratio of -85.56 and a beta of 1.80. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $92.01 and a 1 year 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.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by $0.01. The company had revenue of $476.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.91 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays cut their target price on Natera from $200.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Natera from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Natera from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Natera currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $175.76.

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.