Geneos Wealth Management Inc. Lowers Position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 15.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 452 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 83 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Natera were worth $72,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Berbice Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Natera in the 4th quarter worth $174,000. Encompass More Asset Management increased its stake in Natera by 45.6% during the fourth quarter. Encompass More Asset Management now owns 3,337 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $528,000 after acquiring an additional 1,045 shares during the last quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC acquired a new position in shares of Natera in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,024,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Natera by 222.8% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,412 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $540,000 after purchasing an additional 2,355 shares during the period. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. acquired a new stake in Natera during the 4th quarter worth approximately $317,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In related news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 1,886 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.60, for a total transaction of $333,067.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 101,811 shares in the company, valued at $17,979,822.60. The trade was a 1.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 4,728 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 185,034 shares in the company, valued at $27,090,827.94. This represents a 2.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 263,894 shares of company stock worth $43,801,978. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Natera Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ NTRA opened at $176.92 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 4.23, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $166.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $138.14. Natera, Inc. has a 52-week low of $64.74 and a 52-week high of $183.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.36 billion, a P/E ratio of -100.52 and a beta of 1.65.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.57) by $0.31. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. The business had revenue of $439.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $361.43 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.95) EPS. The business’s revenue was up 63.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Natera, Inc. will post -1.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on NTRA. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Natera in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Natera from $150.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Natera from $132.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. StockNews.com downgraded Natera from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $165.88.

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.