Candriam S.C.A. Acquires 1,531 Shares of Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Candriam S.C.A. grew its holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 1.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 99,814 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 1,531 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Natera were worth $16,863,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in NTRA. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in Natera in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in shares of Natera in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Natera in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 114.8% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 232 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Natera by 83.5% during the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 233 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 2,491 shares of Natera stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.05, for a total transaction of $403,666.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 69,189 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,212,077.45. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Rowan E. Chapman sold 2,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.99, for a total value of $459,222.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,015 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,004,444.85. This represents a 31.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 223,336 shares of company stock valued at $42,990,633. Company insiders own 5.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Natera from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Natera from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on Natera from $197.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $216.65.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of NTRA opened at $200.67 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -87.63 and a beta of 1.75. Natera, Inc. has a 1-year low of $125.38 and a 1-year high of $212.21. The company has a 50-day moving average of $180.78 and a 200 day moving average of $165.22.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.64) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.39) by ($0.25). Natera had a negative return on equity of 25.07% and a negative net margin of 14.61%.The company had revenue of $592.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $514.55 million. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.26) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 34.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Natera Profile

Natera, Inc, a diagnostics company, develops and commercializes molecular testing services worldwide. Its products include Panorama, a non-invasive prenatal test that screens for chromosomal abnormalities of a fetus, as well as in twin pregnancies; Horizon carrier screening test for individuals and couples determine if they are carriers of genetic variations that cause certain genetic conditions; Vistara single-gene NIPT screens for 25 single-gene disorders that cause severe skeletal, cardiac, and neurological conditions; Spectrum, preimplantation genetic tests for couples undergoing IVF; Anora that analyzes miscarriage tissue from women; Empower, a hereditary cancer screening test; and non-invasive prenatal paternity product, which allows a couple to establish paternity without waiting for the child to be born.