Capital Impact Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Capital Impact Advisors LLC boosted its position in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 33.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 65,059 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,229 shares during the quarter. Natera makes up approximately 2.3% of Capital Impact Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Capital Impact Advisors LLC’s holdings in Natera were worth $10,473,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NTRA. Horizon Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Natera in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Natera by 95.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 225 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Hilltop National Bank lifted its position in Natera by 59.8% during the third quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 310 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Natera by 256.8% during the second quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 314 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NTRA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Natera from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Guggenheim upped their price target on Natera from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a report on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Natera from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.47.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 37,175 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.54, for a total transaction of $9,016,424.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 64,123 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,552,392.42. The trade was a 36.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider John Fesko sold 17,806 shares of Natera stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.74, for a total value of $4,179,780.44. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 177,591 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,687,711.34. This represents a 9.11% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 318,222 shares of company stock worth $74,068,068. Insiders own 5.63% of the company’s stock.

Natera Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of Natera stock opened at $187.85 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $219.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $206.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -122.78 and a beta of 1.65. Natera, Inc. has a 12-month low of $125.38 and a 12-month high of $256.36.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.46) by $0.81. The business had revenue of $665.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $600.68 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 9.03% and a negative return on equity of 15.28%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.41) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Natera Profile

Natera is a global diagnostics company that develops and commercializes cell-free DNA and other genetic testing technologies for clinical applications. The company focuses on three principal areas: reproductive health (including non-invasive prenatal testing and carrier screening), oncology (tumor-informed assays for minimal residual disease and recurrence monitoring), and organ transplantation (cell-free DNA tests to detect allograft injury). Natera combines laboratory testing, proprietary bioinformatics, and clinical reporting to deliver personalized genetic information to clinicians and patients.

Key product offerings include Panorama, a non-invasive prenatal test that screens for fetal chromosomal abnormalities and select single-gene conditions; Horizon carrier screening for inherited conditions; Signatera, a personalized, tumor-informed assay used for detecting minimal residual disease and monitoring treatment response in cancer patients; and Prospera, a donor-derived cell-free DNA test used to assess the risk of organ rejection.