Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Sells 633 Shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lowered its stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 20.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,400 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 633 shares during the quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in Natera were worth $380,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Natera by 205.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,800,263 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $355,493,000 after purchasing an additional 1,883,481 shares during the period. PointState Capital LP grew its stake in shares of Natera by 112.0% in the 3rd quarter. PointState Capital LP now owns 782,538 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $99,343,000 after buying an additional 413,468 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Natera by 42.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,099,335 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $144,958,000 after buying an additional 328,375 shares in the last quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Natera by 65.6% during the 3rd quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 687,703 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $87,304,000 after buying an additional 272,361 shares during the period. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. boosted its holdings in Natera by 25.2% in the third quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 1,340,045 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $170,119,000 after acquiring an additional 269,706 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $169.71 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $22.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -96.43 and a beta of 1.66. The company’s 50-day moving average is $167.72 and its 200 day moving average is $141.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a current ratio of 4.39. Natera, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $67.33 and a fifty-two week 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. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 4,728 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.41, for a total value of $692,226.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 185,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,090,827.94. This trade represents a 2.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.77, for a total transaction of $117,861.51. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 156,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,739,941.88. This trade represents a 0.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 312,394 shares of company stock valued at $52,333,520. 7.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on NTRA. StockNews.com downgraded Natera from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Natera from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Natera presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $165.88.

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.