Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Decreases Stake in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP lessened its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 14.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 575,802 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 94,087 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s holdings in Natera were worth $92,687,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its stake in Natera by 95.7% during the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 225 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Natera in the 3rd quarter valued at $46,000. Hilltop National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 59.8% during the 3rd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 310 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 256.8% during the 2nd quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 314 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Natera by 23.1% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 431 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on NTRA shares. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Natera from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Evercore increased their target price on Natera from $190.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Natera in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Citigroup initiated coverage on Natera in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Natera from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $249.20.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NTRA opened at $211.83 on Thursday. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $125.38 and a 1 year high of $256.36. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $227.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $203.10. The firm has a market cap of $29.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -92.50 and a beta of 1.64.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Natera news, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 1,639 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.77, for a total value of $378,232.03. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 137,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,810,952.19. This represents a 1.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider John Fesko sold 3,594 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.02, for a total transaction of $830,285.88. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 178,081 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,140,272.62. The trade was a 1.98% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 368,119 shares of company stock valued at $85,956,782 over the last 90 days. 5.63% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.