Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC Cuts Position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,175 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 225 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Natera were worth $661,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Natera by 104.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Natera by 345.8% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Natera by 372.9% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 331 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 261 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Natera by 20.7% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in Natera by 1,328.0% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 357 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NTRA opened at $138.71 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.75 billion, a PE ratio of -78.81 and a beta of 1.80. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $157.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $151.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.23. Natera, Inc. has a 12-month low of $83.13 and a 12-month high of $183.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.01. The business had revenue of $476.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $447.91 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. Equities research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Natera from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on Natera in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $251.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Natera presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.12.

Insider Activity

In other Natera news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 78,553 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.97, for a total value of $12,958,888.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 267,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,150,756.13. This represents a 22.69 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.77, for a total value of $117,861.51. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 156,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,739,941.88. This trade represents a 0.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 325,922 shares of company stock valued at $51,603,664. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.