Verde Servicos Internacionais S.A. Takes $317,000 Position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Verde Servicos Internacionais S.A. acquired a new stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 2,000 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $317,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. raised 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 buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its holdings in Natera by 148.4% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 318 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Natera by 345.8% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 34.3% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Natera by 32.7% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 430 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 946 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.98, for a total value of $162,693.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 109,474 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,827,338.52. The trade was a 0.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 24,861 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.97, for a total value of $4,101,319.17. Following the sale, the insider now owns 140,684 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,208,639.48. This represents a 15.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 243,546 shares of company stock valued at $40,338,829 over the last ninety days. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of Natera stock opened at $165.26 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $166.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $136.81. Natera, Inc. has a 12 month low of $62.96 and a 12 month high of $183.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.57) by $0.31. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. The business had revenue of $439.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $361.43 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.95) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 63.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on NTRA. Leerink Partners increased their price target on Natera from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Craig Hallum increased their target price on shares of Natera from $121.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Natera from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.94.

Natera 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.