Lion Street Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Lion Street Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 2,595 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $281,000.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in Natera by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 31,497 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,973,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Natera by 6,007.5% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,329 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $459,000 after buying an additional 7,209 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Natera by 28.6% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 720,160 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $45,111,000 after buying an additional 159,993 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Natera by 1,043.3% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 90,423 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $5,664,000 after buying an additional 82,514 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Natera by 101.2% during the 4th quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 145,996 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $9,058,000 after acquiring an additional 73,419 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on NTRA. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Natera from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Natera from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Natera in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $142.00 price objective for the company. Finally, BTIG Research lifted their target price on Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $112.80.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA traded up $6.87 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $114.57. The stock had a trading volume of 4,125,245 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,404,851. The company has a market capitalization of $14.07 billion, a PE ratio of -36.72 and a beta of 1.48. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $36.90 and a 1 year high of $117.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $107.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $95.17. The company has a current ratio of 4.12, a quick ratio of 3.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.30) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.69) by $0.39. Natera had a negative return on equity of 49.72% and a negative net margin of 30.24%. The business had revenue of $413.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $343.00 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.97) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 58.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Natera, Inc. will post -2.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,866 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.65, for a total value of $185,946.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 71,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,170,315.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,496 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.66, for a total value of $613,683.36. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 207,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,209,089.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,866 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.65, for a total transaction of $185,946.90. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 71,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,170,315.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 88,387 shares of company stock valued at $9,547,136. 7.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.