Insider Selling: Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Insider Sells $4,955,652.40 in Stock

Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 15,160 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.89, for a total transaction of $4,955,652.40. Following the transaction, the insider owned 110,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,238,698.51. This trade represents a 12.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 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.

Solomon Moshkevich also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, September 1st, Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.73, for a total transaction of $962,190.00.
• On Monday, August 3rd, Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,410 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.58, for a total value of $905,627.80.
• On Tuesday, July 28th, Solomon Moshkevich sold 1,204 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.07, for a total value of $305,900.28.
• On Monday, July 27th, Solomon Moshkevich sold 1,010 shares of Natera stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.49, for a total value of $263,094.90.
• On Wednesday, July 1st, Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of Natera stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.90, for a total value of $818,700.00.

Natera Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA traded up $2.50 during trading on Thursday, reaching $327.67. The stock had a trading volume of 708,176 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,439,570. Natera, Inc. has a 52 week low of $157.43 and a 52 week high of $343.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -240.93 and a beta of 1.54. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $291.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $237.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The medical research company reported ($0.47) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.49) by $0.02. The business had revenue of $752.75 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $661.24 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 7.11% and a negative return on equity of 11.38%. Natera’s revenue for the quarter was up 37.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.74) earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.02 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NTRA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Natera from $315.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Stephens upped their price target on Natera from $305.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Natera in a research note on Friday, June 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $245.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $290.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $355.00 price target on shares of Natera in a report on Monday, August 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Natera presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $319.38.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTRA. Corient Private Wealth LP boosted its stake in shares of Natera by 39.2% in the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 17,722 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,811,000 after purchasing an additional 4,993 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 315,654 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $85,684,000 after purchasing an additional 9,338 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Natera by 29.8% in the 2nd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 140,931 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $38,256,000 after purchasing an additional 32,395 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Natera by 28,373.5% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 56,324,789 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $15,289,364,000 after purchasing an additional 56,126,974 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital grew its stake in shares of Natera by 11.1% during the second quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,768 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $477,000 after purchasing an additional 177 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.