Barclays Initiates Coverage on Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Investment analysts at Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm set an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price target on the medical research company’s stock. Barclays‘s target price points to a potential upside of 16.33% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on NTRA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Natera from $150.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Leerink Partners upped their price target on shares of Natera from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.94.

Natera Stock Performance

NASDAQ NTRA opened at $171.93 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $22.70 billion, a P/E ratio of -97.69 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $165.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $135.41. Natera has a 12-month low of $62.96 and a 12-month high of $183.00. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.57) by $0.31. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. The business had revenue of $439.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $361.43 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.95) EPS. The business’s revenue was up 63.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Natera will post -1.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Roelof Botha sold 87,473 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.12, for a total transaction of $14,793,433.76. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,224,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,135,977.44. This represents a 6.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 2,212 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.53, for a total value of $350,668.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 19,386 shares in the company, valued at $3,073,262.58. This trade represents a 10.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 224,824 shares of company stock valued at $36,912,749 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Natera

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NTRA. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Natera by 104.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Natera by 345.8% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of Natera by 148.4% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 318 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 34.3% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 32.7% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 430 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is currently owned by 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.