Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Given New $150.00 Price Target at Piper Sandler

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) had its price target upped by investment analysts at Piper Sandler from $120.00 to $150.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the medical research company’s stock. Piper Sandler’s target price points to a potential upside of 26.58% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on NTRA. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Natera from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Natera from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Natera in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $142.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Natera from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, BTIG Research increased their price objective on Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $119.07.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NTRA stock opened at $118.50 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $14.55 billion, a PE ratio of -37.98 and a beta of 1.48. Natera has a 52-week low of $36.90 and a 52-week high of $119.90. The company has a quick ratio of 3.98, a current ratio of 4.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $108.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $96.27.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.30) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.69) by $0.39. Natera had a negative return on equity of 49.72% and a negative net margin of 30.24%. The business had revenue of $413.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $343.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.97) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 58.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Natera will post -2.43 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 499 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.40, for a total transaction of $53,592.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 77,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,314,693.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 1,647 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.96, for a total transaction of $181,104.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 114,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,555,892.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 499 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.40, for a total value of $53,592.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 77,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,314,693.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 84,308 shares of company stock valued at $9,128,555. 7.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Natera by 113.1% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 561,939 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $60,852,000 after acquiring an additional 298,193 shares during the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Natera by 10.3% in the 2nd quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 116,337 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $12,598,000 after acquiring an additional 10,893 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in Natera by 53.6% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 958,383 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $103,783,000 after acquiring an additional 334,630 shares during the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Natera by 13.6% in the 2nd 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. Finally, Tri Locum Partners LP raised its holdings in Natera by 21.3% in the 2nd quarter. Tri Locum Partners LP now owns 230,585 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $24,970,000 after acquiring an additional 40,471 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Natera Company Profile

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.