Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Price Target Raised to $460.00

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) had its target price lifted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $360.00 to $460.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the medical research company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on NTRA. Barclays increased their target price on Natera from $340.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Natera from $220.00 to $284.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research raised shares of Natera from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $305.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group set a $375.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $368.69.

Natera Trading Down 2.8%

NASDAQ NTRA opened at $393.44 on Wednesday. Natera has a 1-year low of $178.01 and a 1-year high of $437.41. The company has a 50 day moving average of $358.21 and a 200-day moving average of $275.25.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The medical research company reported ($0.47) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by $0.02. The business had revenue of $752.75 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $661.24 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 11.38% and a negative net margin of 7.11%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 37.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.74) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Natera will post -1.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Michael Brophy sold 2,419 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.96, for a total value of $614,329.24. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 54,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,788,758.20. This trade represents a 4.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 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. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 15,160 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.89, for a total value of $4,955,652.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 110,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,238,698.51. This represents a 12.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,985 shares of company stock worth $16,119,137. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NTRA. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Natera during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,962,770,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in Natera in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $199,960,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in Natera in the second quarter valued at approximately $150,143,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Natera in the second quarter valued at approximately $149,278,000. Finally, Avala Global LP bought a new stake in shares of Natera during the second quarter worth $124,867,000. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Company Profile

Natera, Inc is a diagnostics company that develops and commercializes molecular testing services designed to assess genetic and disease-related risks. The company uses technologies including cell-free DNA analysis and next-generation sequencing to support clinical decision-making in reproductive health, oncology and organ transplantation.

Its reproductive health offerings include Panorama, a noninvasive prenatal test that screens for certain chromosomal conditions, and Horizon, a carrier screening test that evaluates whether prospective parents carry genetic variants associated with inherited disorders.