Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Stock Has Average Target Price of $353.45 According to Analysts

Shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-three research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a hold recommendation, sixteen have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $357.26.

Several brokerages have recently commented on NTRA. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Natera from $220.00 to $284.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $375.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Natera from $315.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird set a $348.00 price target on Natera in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Stephens increased their price target on Natera from $305.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Michael Brophy sold 478 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.22, for a total transaction of $131,077.16. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 51,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,159,898.14. This represents a 0.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 John Fesko sold 6,517 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $321.53, for a total value of $2,095,411.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 197,257 shares in the company, valued at $63,424,043.21. The trade was a 3.20% 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 valued at $16,119,137. 5.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NTRA. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Natera in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,962,770,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Natera during the second quarter worth $199,960,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in shares of Natera by 111.1% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,179,939 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $270,312,000 after buying an additional 620,954 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in shares of Natera during the second quarter worth $150,143,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Natera during the second quarter worth $149,278,000. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of Natera stock opened at $397.77 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $349.18 and a 200-day moving average of $270.06. Natera has a 52-week low of $169.08 and a 52-week high of $437.41. The stock has a market cap of $57.33 billion, a PE ratio of -292.48 and a beta of 1.50.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The medical research company reported ($0.47) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.49) by $0.02. Natera had a negative net margin of 7.11% and a negative return on equity of 11.38%. The business had revenue of $752.75 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $661.24 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.74) earnings per share. Natera’s revenue for the quarter was up 37.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Natera will post -1.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.