Insider Selling: Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) CFO Sells 25,931 Shares of Stock

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 25,931 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.97, for a total value of $4,277,837.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 109,665 shares in the company, valued at $18,091,435.05. The trade was a 19.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Michael Burkes Brophy also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, October 31st, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,866 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.45, for a total value of $235,955.70.
• On Monday, October 28th, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,238 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.21, for a total value of $146,343.98.
• On Friday, October 25th, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 691 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.81, for a total value of $82,097.71.

Natera Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $171.82 on Friday. 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 1 year low of $62.96 and a 1 year high of $183.00. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $165.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $135.41. The company has a market cap of $22.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -97.63 and a beta of 1.65.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.57) by $0.31. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. The business had revenue of $439.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $361.43 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.95) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 63.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on NTRA. StockNews.com cut Natera from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Natera from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Natera from $132.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Craig Hallum boosted their price target on Natera from $121.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $162.94.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Caprock Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $213,000. Gries Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $286,000. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft bought a new position in shares of Natera during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $451,000. Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of Natera by 51.6% during the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 30,326 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,801,000 after purchasing an additional 10,326 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verde Servicos Internacionais S.A. bought a new position in shares of Natera during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $317,000. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

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.