Stephens Reiterates Overweight Rating for Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Key Points

• Stephens has maintained its "overweight" rating for Natera, setting a price target of $183.00, projecting a potential upside of 15.50% from its previous closing price.
• Despite a mix of ratings from analysts, with four maintaining a buy rating, Natera's stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $193.19.
• Natera reported a loss of ($0.74) earnings per share last quarter, below expectations, but achieved a revenue of $546.60 million, marking a 32.2% increase year-over-year.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "overweight" rating reiterated by research analysts at Stephens in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $183.00 price objective on the medical research company's stock. Stephens' target price points to a potential upside of 15.50% from the stock's previous close.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a report on Sunday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Natera from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Natera from $251.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Natera to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $170.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $193.19.

Natera Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NTRA stock opened at $158.44 on Friday. The business's 50 day moving average is $155.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $154.78. The company has a market cap of $21.75 billion, a PE ratio of -82.95 and a beta of 1.76. Natera has a 12 month low of $110.57 and a 12 month high of $183.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.74) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.60) by ($0.14). Natera had a negative net margin of 12.89% and a negative return on equity of 22.22%. The company had revenue of $546.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $476.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.30) EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 32.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Natera will post -1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.89, for a total value of $398,670.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 123,059 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,353,310.51. This represents a 2.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider John Fesko sold 1,710 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.81, for a total transaction of $239,075.10. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 151,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,216,167.50. The trade was a 1.11% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 60,239 shares of company stock valued at $8,986,542 over the last ninety days. 5.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Natera by 2.3% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,676,653 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $2,141,594,000 after acquiring an additional 282,826 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Natera by 44.3% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,625,785 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,795,125,000 after buying an additional 3,263,822 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of Natera by 56.3% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,537,743 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,490,144,000 after purchasing an additional 3,795,315 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Natera by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,552,725 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $430,640,000 after buying an additional 166,768 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 13.7% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,035,979 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $287,908,000 after purchasing an additional 245,719 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company's stock.

About Natera

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.

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