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

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 482 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.49, for a total transaction of $101,456.18. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 57,496 shares in the company, valued at $12,102,333.04. This trade represents a 0.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 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 shares were 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 shares were 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 shares were 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 shares were sold at an average price of $204.13, for a total transaction of $160,242.05.

Natera Price Performance

NTRA stock traded down $4.79 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $206.77. 1,065,445 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,321,366. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $131.81 and a 1 year high of $256.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $201.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $214.51. The stock has a market cap of $29.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -135.14 and a beta of 1.57.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on NTRA shares. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Natera in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price target on the stock. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of Natera from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Natera from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Natera from $239.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. One investment 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 assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.47.

Institutional Trading of Natera

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NTRA. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Natera in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Palladiem LLC purchased a new position in shares of Natera in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Horizon Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Natera in the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 132.9% in the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 170 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Jackson Hole Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 103.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 163 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

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.