Natera, Inc. $NTRA Shares Sold by Westfield Capital Management Co. LP

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP reduced its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 14.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 575,802 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 94,087 shares during the quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP owned approximately 0.42% of Natera worth $92,687,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its stake in shares of Natera by 95.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 225 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Natera in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Hilltop National Bank grew its holdings in Natera by 59.8% during the 3rd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 310 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Natera by 256.8% during the second quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 314 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Natera by 23.1% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 431 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NTRA. Stephens upped their price objective on Natera from $197.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Natera in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 target price on the stock. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of Natera from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Natera currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $249.20.

Natera Stock Performance

Natera stock opened at $211.83 on Thursday. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $125.38 and a 1 year high of $256.36. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $227.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $203.10. The company has a market cap of $29.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -92.50 and a beta of 1.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 37,175 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.54, for a total transaction of $9,016,424.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 64,123 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,552,392.42. The trade was a 36.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider John Fesko sold 17,806 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.74, for a total value of $4,179,780.44. Following the sale, the insider owned 177,591 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,687,711.34. The trade was a 9.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 368,119 shares of company stock worth $85,956,782 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 5.63% of the company’s stock.

Natera Company Profile

Natera is a global diagnostics company that develops and commercializes cell-free DNA and other genetic testing technologies for clinical applications. The company focuses on three principal areas: reproductive health (including non-invasive prenatal testing and carrier screening), oncology (tumor-informed assays for minimal residual disease and recurrence monitoring), and organ transplantation (cell-free DNA tests to detect allograft injury). Natera combines laboratory testing, proprietary bioinformatics, and clinical reporting to deliver personalized genetic information to clinicians and patients.

Key product offerings include Panorama, a non-invasive prenatal test that screens for fetal chromosomal abnormalities and select single-gene conditions; Horizon carrier screening for inherited conditions; Signatera, a personalized, tumor-informed assay used for detecting minimal residual disease and monitoring treatment response in cancer patients; and Prospera, a donor-derived cell-free DNA test used to assess the risk of organ rejection.