Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.81 EPS

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The medical research company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.46) by $0.81, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $665.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $600.68 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 9.03% and a negative return on equity of 16.71%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.41) EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Natera’s conference call:

• Natera reported a strong Q4 with about 924,000 tests processed, MRD clinical units of 225,000 (+56% YoY), revenue of $666M (+~40% YoY), a record gross margin of 66.9%, and >$107M of operating cash flow in 2025 while guiding 2026 revenue to $2.62–2.70B with 63–65% gross margins.
• MRD adoption and product expansion accelerated—management said >50% of U.S. oncologists ordered Signatera in Q4, launched Signatera Genome, submitted the tissue‑free Latitude MRD to MolDX, and integrated phased‑variant technology (analytic LODs below 1 in 10 million) for improved sensitivity and pharma partnerships.
• In women’s health, Natera launched the 21‑gene Fetal Focus single‑gene NIPT (96% sensitivity, 98% specificity) with prospective EXPAND validation and an oral plenary at SMFM, which management says is driving new OBGYN/MFM account growth.
• Organ‑health momentum continues—Prospera enrollment completed in the randomized ACES‑EMB heart transplant trial (readout mid‑2027) and a lung transplant study showed clinicians omitted a 9‑month surveillance biopsy in ~75% of low‑risk patients without worse short‑term outcomes, supporting biopsy‑reduction use cases.
• Management noted some Q4 upside was driven by one‑time items—~$60M of revenue true‑ups, a deferred‑tax benefit related to the Foresight deal, and higher pharma mix—and warned some margin drivers may not repeat while several new products still lack broad reimbursement, representing execution and reimbursement risk.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of Natera stock traded down $8.06 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $208.04. The company had a trading volume of 2,761,795 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,045,862. Natera has a twelve month low of $125.38 and a twelve month high of $256.36. The company has a market cap of $28.78 billion, a P/E ratio of -135.97 and a beta of 1.64. The company’s 50-day moving average is $226.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $203.54.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 85,299 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.72, for a total value of $19,680,185.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 127,881 shares in the company, valued at $29,504,704.32. This trade represents a 40.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 37,175 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.54, for a total transaction of $9,016,424.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 64,123 shares in the company, valued at $15,552,392.42. The trade was a 36.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 368,119 shares of company stock worth $85,956,782. Corporate insiders own 5.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its holdings in Natera by 6.6% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,560 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 68.3% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,552 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $644,000 after acquiring an additional 1,847 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its position in shares of Natera by 8.6% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 5,993 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $847,000 after buying an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Natera during the 2nd quarter worth $298,000. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in Natera in the second quarter valued at about $558,000. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on NTRA shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Stephens raised their target price on Natera from $197.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. BTIG Research upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $230.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Evercore boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $190.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Natera from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Natera presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $254.47.

Key Headlines Impacting Natera

Here are the key news stories impacting Natera this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly beat — Natera reported Q4 revenue of $665.5M and GAAP EPS of $0.35, well ahead of street estimates (revenue ~$600.7M, EPS loss consensus). The beat supports near-term growth expectations and underpins the stock’s recent strength. Natera Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Favorable clinical data — New Signatera MRD data presented at ASCO GU highlight potential utility across genitourinary cancers (including bladder preservation), which may expand clinical adoption and long-term revenue for Natera’s oncology franchise. Signatera MRD Data at ASCO GU
• Positive Sentiment: Trial results — Natera reported results from the SINERGY trial, another clinical datapoint that could support commercial adoption of its assays. Natera Announces Results From the SINERGY Trial
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades/targets — Robert W. Baird raised its price target to $257 (outperform) and Wells Fargo raised its target to $215 (equal weight), signaling some sell-side confidence in upside from current levels. Benzinga – Analyst Price Target Changes
• Neutral Sentiment: Full-year revenue guidance roughly in line with consensus — Management issued FY2026 revenue guidance (roughly $2.6B–$2.7B), which appears consistent with street expectations and reduces upside surprise potential from guidance alone. (See Q4 release for guidance details.) Natera Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst consensus — Aggregated analyst coverage remains constructive (average “Moderate Buy”), which supports medium-term expectations but doesn’t preclude short-term volatility. Analyst Average Rating
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and fundamentals concerns — Despite the beat, Natera still shows negative net margin and negative return on equity on a GAAP basis; combined with a high market capitalization and a recent run-up toward 52-week highs, investors may be taking profits. MarketBeat Q4 Coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Heavy intraday volume and selling pressure — Trading volume was well above average, consistent with a distribution day where some holders trimmed positions after the company’s strong quarter; that drove the stock lower despite the positives. (See intraday volume and price action for context.)

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.