Bank of Montreal Can Purchases 26,615 Shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 58.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 72,293 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 26,615 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can owned 0.06% of Natera worth $8,068,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HighVista Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Natera in the second quarter worth approximately $386,000. Delap Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Natera during the 2nd quarter worth $454,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Natera during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Profund Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Natera by 87.1% in the 2nd quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 29,174 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,159,000 after purchasing an additional 13,580 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado raised its holdings in Natera by 14.3% in the 2nd quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 11,915 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,290,000 after purchasing an additional 1,489 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Price Performance

Shares of Natera stock opened at $126.95 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 4.14, a quick ratio of 4.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Natera, Inc. has a 12 month low of $36.90 and a 12 month high of $132.01. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $116.41 and a 200 day moving average of $107.02. The firm has a market cap of $15.59 billion, a PE ratio of -40.69 and a beta of 1.53.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.30) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.69) by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $413.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $343.00 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 21.47% and a negative return on equity of 36.74%. Natera’s revenue for the quarter was up 58.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.97) earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In related news, insider Jonathan Sheena sold 2,700 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.57, for a total value of $344,439.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 284,741 shares in the company, valued at $36,324,409.37. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 5,583 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.91, for a total value of $663,874.53. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 200,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,866,426.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jonathan Sheena sold 2,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.57, for a total transaction of $344,439.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 284,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,324,409.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 48,738 shares of company stock worth $5,663,574 in the last three months. Insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NTRA has been the subject of several recent research reports. BTIG Research boosted their price target on Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Natera from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, September 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $120.07.

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.