Rafferty Asset Management LLC Sells 53,521 Shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 40.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 80,327 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 53,521 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Natera worth $12,716,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NTRA. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Natera by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 8,794 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,392,000 after purchasing an additional 961 shares in the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new position in Natera in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,020,000. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Natera in the 4th quarter worth approximately $552,000. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Natera by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 998 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $158,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Natera in the 4th quarter worth approximately $291,000. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 2,562 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.41, for a total value of $354,606.42. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 75,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,457,844.37. This represents a 3.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 87,272 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total value of $12,514,804.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 203,354 shares in the company, valued at $29,160,963.60. This trade represents a 30.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 152,436 shares of company stock valued at $22,019,079 in the last quarter. 7.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Natera Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $152.59 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $148.71 and its 200 day moving average is $156.51. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $92.14 and a fifty-two week high of $183.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.84 billion, a PE ratio of -86.70 and a beta of 1.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a current ratio of 4.39.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.50) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.59) by $0.09. The company had revenue of $501.83 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $446.68 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. Natera’s quarterly revenue was up 36.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.56) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays boosted their price target on Natera from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. StockNews.com cut Natera from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. UBS Group upped their price objective on Natera from $211.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Royal Bank of Canada started coverage on Natera in a report on Thursday, March 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $251.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $182.12.

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.