Torray Investment Partners LLC Reduces Holdings in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Torray Investment Partners LLC reduced its position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 20.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,569 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 2,531 shares during the period. Torray Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Natera were worth $1,914,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in NTRA. Robinhood Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Natera during the fourth quarter worth approximately $12,981,000. Systrade AG acquired a new stake in Natera in the fourth quarter valued at $11,454,000. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG acquired a new stake in Natera in the fourth quarter valued at $2,825,000. Meridiem Capital Partners LP bought a new position in Natera during the 3rd quarter valued at $11,900,000. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Natera by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 438,857 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $100,538,000 after acquiring an additional 71,355 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on NTRA shares. BTIG Research set a $275.00 target price on shares of Natera and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Natera from $280.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Natera in a report on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $310.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird set a $265.00 price objective on Natera in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Natera from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $265.33.

Natera Stock Down 4.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA traded down $11.90 on Friday, reaching $269.95. 969,702 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,642,286. The business’s 50-day moving average is $227.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $219.09. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $131.81 and a fifty-two week high of $288.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -165.61 and a beta of 1.51.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In related news, Director Herm Rosenman sold 16,530 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $4,132,500.00. Following the sale, the director owned 4,250 shares in the company, valued at $1,062,500. This represents a 79.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 41,124 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.03, for a total transaction of $9,089,637.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 108,743 shares in the company, valued at $24,035,465.29. This represents a 27.44% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 178,872 shares of company stock worth $39,627,696. 5.05% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.