Barclays Cuts Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Price Target to $160.00

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) had its price objective reduced by Barclays from $200.00 to $160.00 in a research note released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the medical research company’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on NTRA. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Natera from $183.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Natera in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $251.00 target price for the company. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Natera has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $175.76.

Natera Trading Up 3.3 %

Shares of Natera stock opened at $148.04 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $20.01 billion, a PE ratio of -84.11 and a beta of 1.80. Natera has a 1 year low of $83.13 and a 1 year high of $183.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.23. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $152.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $152.05.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.01. The business had revenue of $476.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $447.91 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Natera will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In related news, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.77, for a total value of $117,861.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 156,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,739,941.88. The trade was a 0.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 78,553 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.97, for a total value of $12,958,888.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 267,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,150,756.13. This represents a 22.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 325,922 shares of company stock valued at $51,603,664 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in Natera by 20.7% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Natera by 1.7% during the fourth 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. Fulton Bank N.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Natera by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 3,652 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $516,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated boosted its stake in shares of Natera by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 2,963 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $470,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 1,325 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $210,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently 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.