Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Stock Price Up 9.1% After Analyst Upgrade

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) shares were up 9.1% during trading on Wednesday after BTIG Research raised their price target on the stock from $250.00 to $270.00. BTIG Research currently has a buy rating on the stock. Natera traded as high as $255.48 and last traded at $256.1530. 895,207 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 33% from the average session volume of 1,332,515 shares. The stock had previously closed at $234.76.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on NTRA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Natera from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $270.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird set a $265.00 price target on Natera in a report on Friday, May 8th. William Blair started coverage on Natera in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Natera in a report on Friday, June 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $245.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Natera presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $255.94.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other news, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 11,000 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.21, for a total value of $2,389,310.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,343,009.43. The trade was a 64.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Roelof Botha sold 78,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.31, for a total value of $17,184,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,076,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $237,097,181.38. This trade represents a 6.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 162,342 shares of company stock worth $35,283,396. Company insiders own 5.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NTRA. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in Natera by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 5,452 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,090,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 3.0% during the first quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 95,061 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $19,011,000 after purchasing an additional 2,805 shares during the period. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new stake in shares of Natera during the first quarter worth approximately $6,410,000. Bull Harbor Capital LLC purchased a new position in Natera during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,543,000. Finally, Encore Global Management LP acquired a new position in Natera in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,200,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $36.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -157.17 and a beta of 1.56. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $209.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $215.30.

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.