Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning Reduces Stock Holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning decreased its stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 34.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,617 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 1,878 shares during the quarter. Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning’s holdings in Natera were worth $331,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NTRA. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 68.3% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 178,350 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $7,892,000 after purchasing an additional 72,400 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 533,889 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $23,625,000 after purchasing an additional 4,291 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. purchased a new position in Natera during the 3rd quarter valued at $666,000. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its holdings in Natera by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 45,469 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $2,012,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares during the period. Finally, Kynam Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Natera by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Kynam Capital Management LP now owns 3,003,668 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $132,912,000 after acquiring an additional 103,668 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Price Performance

NTRA opened at $111.64 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 4.12 and a quick ratio of 3.98. Natera, Inc. has a 12 month low of $36.90 and a 12 month high of $117.23. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $105.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $86.87.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The medical research company reported ($0.56) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.72) by $0.16. Natera had a negative return on equity of 49.72% and a negative net margin of 30.24%. The firm had revenue of $367.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $316.31 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($1.23) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 52.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NTRA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on Natera from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Natera from $123.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Natera from $99.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on Natera from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Natera from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $101.19.

Insider Activity at Natera

In related news, insider Jonathan Sheena sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.55, for a total transaction of $89,550.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 69,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,186,293.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Jonathan Sheena sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.55, for a total transaction of $89,550.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 69,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,186,293.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 6,816 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.13, for a total value of $634,774.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 227,710 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,206,632.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 201,770 shares of company stock valued at $20,023,161 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

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.