Michael Burkes Brophy Sells 1,863 Shares of Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Stock

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,863 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $464,594.94. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,075,492.16. The trade was a 3.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed 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.

Michael Burkes Brophy also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, July 28th, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 2,419 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.96, for a total value of $614,329.24.
• On Monday, July 27th, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 782 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.49, for a total transaction of $203,703.18.
• On Monday, May 4th, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 482 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.49, for a total transaction of $101,456.18.
• On Friday, May 1st, Michael Burkes Brophy sold 313 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.16, for a total transaction of $64,528.08.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $269.66 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -165.44 and a beta of 1.51. Natera, Inc. has a 1-year low of $131.81 and a 1-year high of $288.04. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $245.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $221.90.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Natera in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Natera in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Palladiem LLC purchased a new stake in Natera in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Horizon Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Natera during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 132.9% during the 1st quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 170 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

More Natera News

Here are the key news stories impacting Natera this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains favorable: Canaccord Genuity raised its price target to $330 and maintained a “buy” rating, while the broader analyst consensus is “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $267.83. Analyst and Natera market coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional ownership and recent buying provide additional support. Major investors including Coatue Management, Wellington Management, Norges Bank, JPMorgan and AQR Capital Management increased their positions; institutions collectively own approximately 99.9% of the stock.
• Neutral Sentiment: CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 5,064 shares worth about $1.28 million, while CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,770 shares for roughly $1.48 million. Because the sales were pre-arranged and intended to satisfy tax-withholding obligations, they are less likely to signal reduced management confidence. CFO SEC filing CEO SEC filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Insiders John Fesko and Solomon Moshkevich also sold shares under similar tax-related plans, while retaining sizable positions. Fesko’s latest sale involved 782 shares worth approximately $203,700. Fesko SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: The concentration of insider selling could create modest short-term selling pressure and may prompt valuation concerns. Natera also trades at a high valuation relative to its earnings profile, with a negative trailing price-to-earnings ratio, although no new operational warning accompanied the filings.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NTRA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on Natera in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 target price on the stock. Zacks Research cut Natera from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Natera from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Natera in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 target price for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Natera currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $267.83.

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.