Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Lowered to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on NTRA. Stephens reaffirmed an overweight rating and set a $78.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Craig Hallum started coverage on Natera in a report on Monday, April 8th. They set a buy rating and a $117.00 target price on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Natera from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and set a $120.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, April 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Natera from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded shares of Natera from a strong-buy rating to an outperform rating and increased their target price for the company from $68.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $86.40.

Natera Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of NTRA opened at $91.04 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 3.96 and a current ratio of 4.10. Natera has a 52 week low of $36.90 and a 52 week high of $98.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -24.02 and a beta of 1.37. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $86.40 and a 200-day moving average of $66.49.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The medical research company reported ($0.64) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.73) by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $311.11 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $300.38 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 62.19% and a negative net margin of 40.16%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Natera will post -2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Daniel Rabinowitz sold 787 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.38, for a total transaction of $71,916.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 205,552 shares in the company, valued at $18,783,341.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Daniel Rabinowitz sold 787 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.38, for a total transaction of $71,916.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 205,552 shares in the company, valued at $18,783,341.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider John Fesko sold 2,358 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.09, for a total transaction of $153,482.22. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 108,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,061,874.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 453,644 shares of company stock valued at $36,594,940. 9.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 47.8% in the first quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI now owns 538 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of Natera by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 6,216 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $389,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 0.5% in the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 45,469 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,012,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 1.8% in the third quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 14,506 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $642,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group increased its position in shares of Natera by 109.3% during the fourth quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 745 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Natera Company 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.