Geode Capital Management LLC Raises Stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,232,681 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 142,201 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 1.69% of Natera worth $355,809,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NTRA. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its holdings in Natera by 108.7% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 5,689 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $722,000 after buying an additional 2,963 shares during the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co purchased a new position in shares of Natera in the 3rd quarter valued at about $238,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in shares of Natera by 15,167.3% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 7,481 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $950,000 after acquiring an additional 7,432 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Natera by 2.4% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 10,319 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,309,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its holdings in Natera by 39.9% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 315,300 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $40,027,000 after purchasing an additional 89,900 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Natera Trading Down 3.5 %

NASDAQ NTRA opened at $133.87 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 4.23, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -76.06 and a beta of 1.80. Natera, Inc. has a 52-week low of $83.13 and a 52-week high of $183.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $156.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $151.23.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted 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. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. The business had revenue of $476.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $447.91 million. Equities research analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NTRA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays began coverage on shares of Natera in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Natera from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Natera currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.12.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 87,272 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total transaction of $12,514,804.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 203,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,160,963.60. The trade was a 30.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.78, for a total value of $563,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 9,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,366,129.12. This represents a 29.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 325,922 shares of company stock valued at $51,603,664 in the last ninety days. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.