Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) CFO Michael Burkes Brophy Sells 478 Shares

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 478 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.22, for a total transaction of $131,077.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 51,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,159,898.14. This trade represents a 0.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 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 Monday, August 3rd, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 317 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $267.99, for a total transaction of $84,952.83.
• On Wednesday, July 29th, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,863 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $464,594.94.
• On Tuesday, July 28th, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 2,419 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.96, for a total transaction of $614,329.24.
• On Monday, July 27th, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 782 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.49, for a total transaction of $203,703.18.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $274.58 on Thursday. Natera, Inc. has a 52 week low of $135.75 and a 52 week high of $288.04. The firm has a market cap of $39.32 billion, a PE ratio of -168.45 and a beta of 1.51. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $251.03 and its 200-day moving average is $222.85.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Natera by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,854,334 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,944,800,000 after purchasing an additional 1,225,420 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Natera by 94.7% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,976,325 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,140,026,000 after purchasing an additional 2,420,263 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Natera by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,389,599 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $545,624,000 after purchasing an additional 72,087 shares in the last quarter. Coatue Management LLC raised its holdings in Natera by 1,446.1% during the fourth quarter. Coatue Management LLC now owns 2,633,334 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $603,270,000 after buying an additional 2,463,008 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Natera by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,608,644 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $596,078,000 after buying an additional 11,689 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NTRA has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Natera from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Natera in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Natera in a research note on Friday, June 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $245.00 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $265.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Natera from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Natera currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $267.83.

Key Stories Impacting Natera

Here are the key news stories impacting Natera this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Natera filed with Japan’s Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) for approval of its Signatera test for bladder cancer. Approval would expand the addressable market for the company’s molecular residual disease testing and could support additional international revenue growth. Natera Files for Japan PMDA Approval of Signatera Test in Bladder Cancer
• Neutral Sentiment: Natera reported sales by CEO Steven Leonard Chapman, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy, and executives Solomon Moshkevich and John Fesko totaling approximately 7,576 shares and $2.02 million. Each sale was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan and was made to cover tax withholding obligations from vested equity awards. The executives retained substantial positions, reducing the significance of the transactions as a signal of weakening confidence.

Natera Company Profile

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.