Rhumbline Advisers Decreases Position in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Rhumbline Advisers reduced its stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 166,638 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 2,611 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in Natera were worth $26,824,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NTRA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 44.3% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,625,785 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,795,125,000 after buying an additional 3,263,822 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Natera in the second quarter valued at $277,749,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Natera by 44.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,726,750 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $291,717,000 after acquiring an additional 532,769 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 20.6% during the second 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 118.3% in the 2nd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 572,832 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $96,774,000 after purchasing an additional 310,452 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Stock Performance

NTRA stock opened at $206.23 on Monday. Natera, Inc. has a one year low of $125.38 and a one year high of $256.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.53 billion, a PE ratio of -90.06 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a fifty day moving average of $230.37 and a 200-day moving average of $199.48.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 6,939 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.83, for a total value of $1,580,912.37. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,120 shares in the company, valued at $11,874,499.60. The trade was a 11.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 4,725 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.77, for a total value of $1,090,388.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 123,156 shares in the company, valued at $28,420,710.12. This represents a 3.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 455,899 shares of company stock worth $106,475,440 in the last three months. 5.63% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NTRA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Guggenheim raised their price target on Natera from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Natera from $218.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. BTIG Research upped their price target on shares of Natera from $230.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Natera from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $249.20.

Natera 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.