NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Has $900,000 Holdings in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 143.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,340 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,146 shares during the period. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s holdings in Natera were worth $900,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NTRA. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in Natera in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in shares of Natera by 95.7% during the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 225 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Natera in the third quarter valued at about $46,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Natera in the second quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Natera by 256.8% during the second quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 314 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $242.78 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $232.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $190.23. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $125.38 and a fifty-two week high of $256.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -106.02 and a beta of 1.62.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.64) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.39) by ($0.25). Natera had a negative net margin of 14.61% and a negative return on equity of 25.07%. The company had revenue of $592.18 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $514.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.26) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 34.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 160,703 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.96, for a total value of $32,134,171.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 144,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,957,407.36. The trade was a 52.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Roy D. Baynes sold 7,668 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.08, for a total value of $1,710,577.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,359 shares in the company, valued at $4,095,525.72. The trade was a 29.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 339,029 shares of company stock valued at $72,768,595. 5.63% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on NTRA. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Natera from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Monday, January 12th. BTIG Research raised their target price on Natera from $230.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $190.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $245.50.

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.