Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Given New $160.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) had its target price increased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $135.00 to $160.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the medical research company’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on NTRA. BTIG Research raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of Natera in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Natera from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Natera from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.65.

Natera Trading Down 3.3 %

NTRA opened at $146.06 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $127.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $115.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.01. Natera has a 12 month low of $52.01 and a 12 month high of $167.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -82.99 and a beta of 1.53.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.57) by $0.31. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. The business had revenue of $439.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $361.43 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.95) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 63.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Natera will post -1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 4,728 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.41, for a total value of $692,226.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 185,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,090,827.94. This represents a 2.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jonathan Sheena sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.67, for a total transaction of $377,010.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 57,432 shares in the company, valued at $7,217,479.44. This represents a 4.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 36,821 shares of company stock valued at $4,776,878 in the last ninety days. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Natera

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Natera in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Quarry LP raised its position in shares of Natera by 148.4% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 318 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 50.0% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 324 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in Natera by 34.3% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in Natera in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $57,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Company 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.