Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Insider John Fesko Sells 928 Shares

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) insider John Fesko sold 928 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.66, for a total transaction of $220,548.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 175,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,718,836.40. This trade represents a 0.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

John Fesko also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, January 27th, John Fesko sold 784 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.53, for a total value of $188,575.52.
• On Wednesday, January 21st, John Fesko sold 339 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.00, for a total value of $79,665.00.
• On Tuesday, January 20th, John Fesko sold 17,806 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.74, for a total value of $4,179,780.44.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NTRA opened at $231.48 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $32.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -101.08 and a beta of 1.62. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $235.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $193.29. Natera, Inc. has a one year low of $125.38 and a one year high of $256.36.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.64) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.39) by ($0.25). Natera had a negative net margin of 14.61% and a negative return on equity of 25.07%. The business had revenue of $592.18 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $514.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.26) EPS. The company’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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on NTRA. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Natera from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Natera from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Natera to a “hold” rating and set a $172.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 27th. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $230.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Natera in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $249.20.

Trending Headlines about Natera

Here are the key news stories impacting Natera this week:

• Negative Sentiment: CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold a total of 5,064 shares across Jan. 27–29 for roughly $1.19M (transactions at ~$240.53, $237.56 and $230.40); his holdings fell by ~3% but he still holds ~59k shares. CFO Form 4
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Steven L. Chapman sold 5,970 shares across Jan. 27–28 for roughly $1.43M (avg ~$237–240); his stake decreased ~1–2% and he still owns ~213k shares. CEO Form 4
• Negative Sentiment: Other insiders (John Fesko and Solomon Moshkevich) also sold multiple tranches (combined ~3,925 shares, ~ $0.94M), each reducing holdings by under 1%. Fesko Form 4 Moshkevich Form 4

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NTRA. Horizon Investments LLC bought a new stake in Natera in the third quarter valued at $32,000. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Natera in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its position in Natera by 95.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 225 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Natera during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Quent Capital LLC acquired a new position in Natera during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.