Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Shares Sold by E Fund Management Co. Ltd.

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. trimmed its position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 2.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,260 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 177 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Natera were worth $517,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTRA. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Natera by 115.7% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,654,303 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $73,203,000 after purchasing an additional 887,409 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Natera by 52.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,529,496 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $111,930,000 after buying an additional 865,404 shares in the last quarter. Avidity Partners Management LP lifted its holdings in Natera by 107.7% during the 3rd quarter. Avidity Partners Management LP now owns 899,000 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $39,781,000 after buying an additional 466,100 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Natera by 291.2% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 423,080 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $26,502,000 after acquiring an additional 314,935 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Natera in the 4th quarter valued at about $13,330,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Natera

In other Natera news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 9,326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.36, for a total transaction of $824,045.36. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,957 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,821,120.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Herm Rosenman sold 93,901 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.37, for a total value of $6,513,912.37. Following the sale, the director now owns 61,685 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,279,088.45. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 9,326 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.36, for a total value of $824,045.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,821,120.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 380,750 shares of company stock worth $31,864,820 over the last three months. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NTRA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Natera from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, April 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Natera from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $78.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. StockNews.com raised Natera from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Natera from $70.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.40.

Natera Stock Performance

NTRA traded down $1.49 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $95.66. The stock had a trading volume of 1,241,379 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,404,302. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.55 billion, a P/E ratio of -25.24 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 3.96 and a current ratio of 4.10. Natera, Inc. has a twelve month low of $36.90 and a twelve month high of $98.82. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $91.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $70.64.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The medical research company reported ($0.64) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.73) by $0.09. Natera had a negative net margin of 40.16% and a negative return on equity of 62.19%. The firm had revenue of $311.11 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $300.38 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -2.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.