Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Price Target Raised to $176.00

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) had its price objective boosted by Morgan Stanley from $132.00 to $176.00 in a research note released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the medical research company’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on NTRA. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Natera from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Natera currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $137.65.

Natera Stock Down 3.0 %

NASDAQ:NTRA traded down $4.52 on Thursday, reaching $146.59. The stock had a trading volume of 1,415,219 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,334,964. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $126.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $115.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.01. Natera has a 12-month low of $52.01 and a 12-month high of $167.79.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $439.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $361.43 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. The company’s revenue was up 63.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.95) EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Natera will post -1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In related news, Director Rowan E. Chapman sold 2,614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.68, for a total value of $333,755.52. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,017,481.92. This trade represents a 24.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 1,196 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.21, for a total transaction of $141,379.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 110,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,085,255.95. The trade was a 1.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 29,881 shares of company stock worth $3,733,983. 7.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in Natera in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,309,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in Natera by 24.0% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 697,042 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $88,490,000 after acquiring an additional 135,103 shares during the last quarter. PointState Capital LP increased its stake in shares of Natera by 112.0% in the third quarter. PointState Capital LP now owns 782,538 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $99,343,000 after buying an additional 413,468 shares during the period. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. increased its position in shares of Natera by 31.4% in the third quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. now owns 94,605 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $12,010,000 after acquiring an additional 22,600 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in Natera by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 10,319 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,309,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.