Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) CFO Sells $101,456.18 in Stock

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 482 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.49, for a total transaction of $101,456.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 57,496 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,102,333.04. The trade was a 0.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

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

• On Friday, May 1st, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 313 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.16, for a total transaction of $64,528.08.
• On Wednesday, April 29th, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 3,070 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.74, for a total transaction of $594,781.80.
• On Monday, April 27th, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,993 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.14, for a total transaction of $406,851.02.
• On Tuesday, March 10th, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 785 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.13, for a total transaction of $160,242.05.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of NTRA traded down $4.79 on Tuesday, reaching $206.77. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,065,445 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,321,366. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.42 billion, a P/E ratio of -135.14 and a beta of 1.57. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $201.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $214.51. Natera, Inc. has a 12-month low of $131.81 and a 12-month high of $256.36.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.46) by $0.81. The company had revenue of $665.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $600.68 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 9.03% and a negative return on equity of 15.28%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.41) earnings per share. Analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Natera from $239.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Natera from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Natera in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $300.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Natera from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.47.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NTRA. Reflection Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Natera during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Palladiem LLC bought a new stake in shares of Natera during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Horizon Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Natera during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Natera by 132.9% during the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 170 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Jackson Hole Trust raised its position in shares of Natera by 103.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 163 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

About Natera

Natera is a global diagnostics company that develops and commercializes cell-free DNA and other genetic testing technologies for clinical applications. The company focuses on three principal areas: reproductive health (including non-invasive prenatal testing and carrier screening), oncology (tumor-informed assays for minimal residual disease and recurrence monitoring), and organ transplantation (cell-free DNA tests to detect allograft injury). Natera combines laboratory testing, proprietary bioinformatics, and clinical reporting to deliver personalized genetic information to clinicians and patients.

Key product offerings include Panorama, a non-invasive prenatal test that screens for fetal chromosomal abnormalities and select single-gene conditions; Horizon carrier screening for inherited conditions; Signatera, a personalized, tumor-informed assay used for detecting minimal residual disease and monitoring treatment response in cancer patients; and Prospera, a donor-derived cell-free DNA test used to assess the risk of organ rejection.