Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) CEO Steven Leonard Chapman Sells 2,190 Shares

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 2,190 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.49, for a total value of $570,473.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 106,553 shares in the company, valued at $27,755,990.97. The trade was a 2.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Steven Leonard Chapman also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, July 28th, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 3,580 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.07, for a total value of $909,570.60.
• On Thursday, June 4th, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 41,124 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.03, for a total transaction of $9,089,637.72.
• On Friday, May 1st, Steven Leonard Chapman sold 902 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.16, for a total transaction of $185,956.32.

Natera Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NTRA stock opened at $253.82 on Thursday. Natera, Inc. has a 12 month low of $131.81 and a 12 month high of $288.04. The stock has a market cap of $36.35 billion, a P/E ratio of -155.72 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $244.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $221.65.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTRA. Horizon Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Natera by 22.0% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 244 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its stake in Natera by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 270 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Savvy Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Natera by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Savvy Advisors Inc. now owns 1,541 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $353,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in Natera by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 905 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $181,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Corp lifted its stake in Natera by 5.5% in the first quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 982 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $196,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NTRA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Natera from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. William Blair assumed coverage on Natera in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Natera in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 price objective on the stock. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on Natera from $280.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $267.83.

Key Stories Impacting Natera

Here are the key news stories impacting Natera this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Most notably, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 5,064 shares for approximately $1.28 million, while CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,770 shares for about $1.48 million. Both executives cited pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plans and said the sales were made to cover tax-withholding obligations related to vested equity awards, reducing the likelihood that the transactions signal a loss of confidence. CFO SEC filing CEO SEC filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Insiders John Fesko and Solomon Moshkevich also sold a combined 3,927 shares worth approximately $1.01 million under similar pre-arranged plans to meet tax obligations. They retained substantial holdings after the sales, further limiting the negative interpretation. Fesko SEC filing Moshkevich SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: The concentration of sales by the CEO, CFO and other insiders may nevertheless create modest short-term selling pressure or raise valuation concerns, particularly because NTRA remains well below its 52-week high and carries a negative trailing price-to-earnings ratio. However, the filings contain no new operational or financial warning.

About Natera

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.