Canaccord Genuity Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Stock

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) had its price target increased by equities researchers at Canaccord Genuity Group from $200.00 to $250.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the medical research company’s stock. Canaccord Genuity Group’s target price points to a potential upside of 25.27% from the company’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Natera from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. BNP Paribas raised Natera to a “hold” rating and set a $172.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Natera from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $190.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $206.74.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NTRA traded up $1.09 during trading on Friday, hitting $199.57. 2,706,980 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,426,347. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $177.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $163.28. Natera has a 1 year low of $125.38 and a 1 year high of $203.23. The company has a market cap of $27.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -104.49 and a beta of 1.75.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The medical research company reported ($0.64) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.39) by ($0.25). Natera had a negative net margin of 12.89% and a negative return on equity of 22.22%. The business had revenue of $592.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $514.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.26) earnings per share. Natera’s revenue was up 34.7% on a year-over-year basis. Natera has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Natera will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 2,491 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.05, for a total transaction of $403,666.55. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 69,189 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,212,077.45. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 160,703 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.96, for a total value of $32,134,171.88. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 144,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,957,407.36. The trade was a 52.60% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 224,889 shares of company stock worth $43,232,062. 5.63% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewEdge Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Natera during the 3rd quarter worth about $372,000. Essex Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Natera in the 3rd quarter valued at $210,000. Readystate Asset Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Natera during the 3rd quarter worth about $12,742,000. Zweig DiMenna Associates LLC grew its holdings in Natera by 6.8% during the third quarter. Zweig DiMenna Associates LLC now owns 132,500 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $21,329,000 after purchasing an additional 8,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP raised its holdings in Natera by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 14,820 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,386,000 after acquiring an additional 1,515 shares during the period. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.