First Turn Management LLC Makes New $19.76 Million Investment in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

First Turn Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 155,650 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,760,000. Natera makes up 3.1% of First Turn Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Farallon Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Natera by 13.6% during the second quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 4,460,557 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $483,034,000 after acquiring an additional 532,874 shares during the last quarter. First Light Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Natera by 295.9% during the first quarter. First Light Asset Management LLC now owns 656,708 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $60,063,000 after acquiring an additional 490,822 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Natera by 257.6% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 651,523 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $70,553,000 after buying an additional 469,327 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised its stake in Natera by 53.6% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 958,383 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $103,783,000 after buying an additional 334,630 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Natera by 311.9% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 406,653 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $44,036,000 after buying an additional 307,920 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Natera

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,024 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.48, for a total transaction of $645,483.52. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 195,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,141,737.28. This represents a 2.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 2,212 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.53, for a total transaction of $350,668.36. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 19,386 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,073,262.58. The trade was a 10.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 36,821 shares of company stock worth $4,776,878 in the last three months. 7.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Natera Trading Up 5.0 %

NTRA stock opened at $153.42 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.23. Natera, Inc. has a one year low of $53.31 and a one year 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 $115.76.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.57) by $0.31. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. The company had revenue of $439.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $361.43 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.95) EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 63.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.7 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on NTRA shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Natera from $132.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Craig Hallum lifted their price objective on shares of Natera from $121.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.59.

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.