Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Stock Price Down 3.1% Following Insider Selling

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) shares fell 3.1% during mid-day trading on Friday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $163.48 and last traded at $164.17. 146,118 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 1,341,569 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.36.

Specifically, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 9,682 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.98, for a total value of $1,548,926.36. Following the transaction, the director now owns 9,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,552,445.92. This represents a 49.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on NTRA. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Natera from $132.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Natera from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, August 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.59.

Natera Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -93.19 and a beta of 1.53. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $130.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $117.36.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.57) by $0.31. The business had revenue of $439.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $361.43 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 63.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.95) earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.66 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 34.3% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 32.7% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 430 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Natera by 3.3% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,477 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $441,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. RiverPark Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Natera by 3.5% during the third quarter. RiverPark Advisors LLC now owns 3,347 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $425,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Natera by 5.4% during the third 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 last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by 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.