Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Buys 8,088 Shares of Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 28.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,411 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 8,088 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Natera were worth $6,136,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTRA. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Natera by 2.3% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,676,653 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,141,594,000 after acquiring an additional 282,826 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 44.3% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,625,785 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,795,125,000 after acquiring an additional 3,263,822 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 7.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,552,725 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $430,640,000 after purchasing an additional 166,768 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Natera by 20.6% during the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,937,647 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $327,346,000 after purchasing an additional 330,696 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Natera by 44.6% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,726,750 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $291,717,000 after purchasing an additional 532,769 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 1,590 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total value of $373,650.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 219,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,500,250. This trade represents a 0.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 37,175 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.54, for a total transaction of $9,016,424.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 64,123 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,552,392.42. This represents a 36.70% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 509,657 shares of company stock valued at $113,349,092. 5.63% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NTRA opened at $241.58 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $234.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $191.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -105.49 and a beta of 1.62. Natera, Inc. has a 52 week low of $125.38 and a 52 week high of $256.36.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NTRA has been the topic of several research analyst reports. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Natera to a “hold” rating and set a $172.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Natera from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Stephens increased their price target on Natera from $197.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Zacks Research raised Natera from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 1st. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on Natera in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.