Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $175.70 and last traded at $175.53, with a volume of 715692 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $170.40.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on NTRA. Craig Hallum increased their price objective on Natera from $121.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $132.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on shares of Natera from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on Natera from $150.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $158.00.

Natera Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -99.43 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $159.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $131.68.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.57) by $0.31. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. The business had revenue of $439.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $361.43 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.95) earnings per share. Natera’s revenue was up 63.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 1,709 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.76, for a total transaction of $206,378.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 194,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,501,707.40. This represents a 0.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Rowan E. Chapman sold 1,767 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.24, for a total transaction of $300,814.08. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,202 shares in the company, valued at $1,055,828.48. This trade represents a 22.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 127,932 shares of company stock valued at $20,635,430. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Natera in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Natera by 148.4% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 318 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Natera by 345.8% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in Natera by 34.3% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Natera by 32.7% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 430 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

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.