Mariner LLC Boosts Stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Mariner LLC increased its position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 9,769 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 636 shares during the quarter. Mariner LLC’s holdings in Natera were worth $1,546,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Securities Inc. raised its holdings in Natera by 20.7% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Natera by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 3,629 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $574,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated lifted its position in Natera by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 2,963 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $470,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Natera by 104.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. grew its holdings in Natera by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 998 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $158,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,442 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.87, for a total value of $233,416.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 108,032 shares in the company, valued at $17,487,139.84. This represents a 1.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 87,272 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.40, for a total transaction of $12,514,804.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 203,354 shares in the company, valued at $29,160,963.60. The trade was a 30.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 198,743 shares of company stock worth $30,558,447 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Natera Trading Up 4.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $154.48 on Friday. Natera, Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.20 and a 52-week high of $183.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -87.77 and a beta of 1.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a current ratio of 4.39. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $148.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $153.19.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by $0.01. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. The company had revenue of $476.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.91 million. Analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NTRA. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Natera in a report on Thursday, March 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $251.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com raised Natera from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Natera from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $175.76.

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.