Jennison Associates LLC Takes $13.33 Million Position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 212,811 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,330,000. Jennison Associates LLC owned approximately 0.18% of Natera as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. CWM LLC raised its stake in shares of Natera by 224.4% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,317 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 911 shares during the period. Ellsworth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Natera in the third quarter valued at about $364,000. Xponance Inc. raised its position in Natera by 1.8% in the third quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 14,506 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $642,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 9.2% during the third quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 4,738 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $210,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in shares of Natera by 19.6% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 20,616 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $912,000 after buying an additional 3,384 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on NTRA. Craig Hallum started coverage on shares of Natera in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $117.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Natera from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $78.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Natera from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on Natera from $70.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Natera currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 14,813 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.09, for a total value of $964,178.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,957 shares in the company, valued at $16,074,431.13. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 14,813 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.09, for a total transaction of $964,178.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 246,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,074,431.13. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,523 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.38, for a total transaction of $139,171.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 73,039 shares in the company, valued at $6,674,303.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 453,644 shares of company stock worth $36,594,940. 9.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Natera Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of Natera stock opened at $91.28 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.96, a current ratio of 4.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Natera, Inc. has a 1-year low of $36.90 and a 1-year high of $98.82. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $87.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The medical research company reported ($0.64) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.73) by $0.09. The company had revenue of $311.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $300.38 million. Natera had a negative return on equity of 62.19% and a negative net margin of 40.16%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -2.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Natera

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.