Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Price Target Raised to $160.00

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) had its price target increased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $135.00 to $160.00 in a research note released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the medical research company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Natera from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Natera from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. BTIG Research upped their price target on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Natera from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $137.65.

Natera Stock Down 3.3 %

NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $146.06 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 4.01 and a current ratio of 4.39. The firm has a market cap of $19.28 billion, a P/E ratio of -82.99 and a beta of 1.53. Natera has a fifty-two week low of $52.01 and a fifty-two week high of $167.79. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $127.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $115.46.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.57) by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $439.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $361.43 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. The company’s revenue was up 63.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.95) earnings per share. Analysts predict that Natera will post -1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Rowan E. Chapman sold 2,614 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.68, for a total value of $333,755.52. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,017,481.92. The trade was a 24.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 4,728 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.41, for a total value of $692,226.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 185,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,090,827.94. This trade represents a 2.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 36,821 shares of company stock worth $4,776,878. 7.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Natera

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Natera by 34.3% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Natera by 32.7% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 430 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Natera by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,477 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $441,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the period. RiverPark Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. RiverPark Advisors LLC now owns 3,347 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $425,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Natera by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,646 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. 99.90% of the stock is 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.