Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen
by Danessa Lincoln · The Markets DailyNatera (NASDAQ:NTRA – Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.
NTRA has been the topic of a number of other reports. BTIG Research upped their target price on Natera from $230.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Natera from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Natera from $239.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.47.
View Our Latest Analysis on Natera
Natera Price Performance
Shares of NTRA stock opened at $207.98 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $207.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $209.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.48 billion, a P/E ratio of -135.93 and a beta of 1.68. Natera has a 12 month low of $125.38 and a 12 month high of $256.36.
Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.46) by $0.81. Natera had a negative return on equity of 15.28% and a negative net margin of 9.03%.The company had revenue of $665.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $600.68 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.41) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Natera will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.
Insider Activity
In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 85,299 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.72, for a total value of $19,680,185.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 127,881 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,504,704.32. This trade represents a 40.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider John Fesko sold 17,806 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.74, for a total transaction of $4,179,780.44. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 177,591 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,687,711.34. This represents a 9.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 314,545 shares of company stock worth $73,141,185. 5.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NTRA. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Natera during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Palladiem LLC acquired a new stake in Natera in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Horizon Investments LLC bought a new stake in Natera during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust raised its stake in Natera by 103.8% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 163 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its position in Natera by 95.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 225 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.
Natera Company Profile
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.