Shell Asset Management Co. Invests $180,000 in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Shell Asset Management Co. acquired a new stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,137 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Natera by 104.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Natera by 372.9% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 331 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. raised its holdings in Natera by 20.7% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Natera by 1,328.0% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 357 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NTRA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Natera from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Natera presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $182.12.

Insider Activity

In other Natera news, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,000 shares of Natera stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.69, for a total value of $590,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 9,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,433,183.76. The trade was a 29.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 87,272 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total transaction of $12,514,804.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 203,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,160,963.60. This trade represents a 30.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 152,436 shares of company stock valued at $22,019,079 in the last quarter. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Natera Stock Performance

NTRA opened at $153.27 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Natera, Inc. has a 12-month low of $92.14 and a 12-month high of $183.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $148.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $157.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.93 billion, a PE ratio of -87.09 and a beta of 1.79.

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