Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC Increases Stock Position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 29.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,230 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 730 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Natera were worth $202,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Natera by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 6,216 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $389,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in shares of Natera by 0.5% during the 3rd 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 buying an additional 230 shares during the period. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group grew its stake in shares of Natera by 109.3% during the 4th quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 745 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 389 shares during the period. RiverPark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Natera during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Natera during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA traded up $0.38 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $108.89. The stock had a trading volume of 206,146 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,405,083. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $95.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.23. Natera, Inc. has a 1-year low of $36.90 and a 1-year high of $110.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 4.12 and a quick ratio of 3.98.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 9th. The medical research company reported ($0.56) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.72) by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $367.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $316.31 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 30.24% and a negative return on equity of 49.72%. The company’s revenue was up 52.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($1.23) EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other Natera news, insider Daniel Rabinowitz sold 35,307 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.09, for a total value of $2,651,202.63. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 204,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,334,729.62. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 9,326 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.36, for a total value of $824,045.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,821,120.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel Rabinowitz sold 35,307 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.09, for a total transaction of $2,651,202.63. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 204,218 shares in the company, valued at $15,334,729.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 323,628 shares of company stock worth $29,214,503. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NTRA. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Natera from $99.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Craig Hallum began coverage on shares of Natera in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $117.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Natera from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Natera currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $98.47.

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.