Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Director Sells $563,120.00 in Stock

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.78, for a total value of $563,120.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,366,129.12. This represents a 29.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Gail Boxer Marcus also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, March 12th, Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,000 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.69, for a total value of $590,760.00.

Natera Stock Down 3.5 %

Shares of NTRA opened at $133.87 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $156.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $151.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a current ratio of 4.39. The firm has a market cap of $18.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -76.06 and a beta of 1.80. Natera, Inc. has a 52 week low of $83.13 and a 52 week high of $183.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.01. The company had revenue of $476.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.91 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. On average, analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NTRA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Natera from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on Natera in a report on Thursday, March 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $251.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Natera from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Natera currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.12.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. 111 Capital acquired a new stake in Natera in the 4th quarter worth about $397,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Natera by 79.5% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 19,493 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,086,000 after buying an additional 8,635 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in Natera during the fourth quarter worth approximately $19,210,000. HWG Holdings LP increased its stake in Natera by 173.0% during the 4th quarter. HWG Holdings LP now owns 40,739 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $6,449,000 after acquiring an additional 25,819 shares during the period. Finally, Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. raised its holdings in Natera by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. now owns 96,105 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $15,213,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Natera

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.