Royal Bank of Canada Upgrades Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) to Moderate Buy

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) was upgraded by equities researchers at Royal Bank of Canada to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on NTRA. Craig Hallum raised their target price on shares of Natera from $121.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Natera from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Natera from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Natera in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.12.

Natera Stock Performance

NTRA opened at $148.22 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $164.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $148.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.39 and a quick ratio of 4.23. The company has a market capitalization of $20.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -84.22 and a beta of 1.80. Natera has a 1-year low of $83.13 and a 1-year high of $183.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.01. Natera had a negative return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. The firm had revenue of $476.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.91 million. Research analysts predict that Natera will post -1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Gail Boxer Marcus sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.69, for a total transaction of $590,760.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 9,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,433,183.76. This trade represents a 29.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of Natera stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.77, for a total transaction of $117,861.51. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 156,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,739,941.88. The trade was a 0.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 298,946 shares of company stock worth $47,803,462. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Natera

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Natera by 20.7% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Natera by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 3,629 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $574,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated lifted its stake in shares of Natera by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 2,963 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $470,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 34.3% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 372 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its holdings in shares of Natera by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 1,325 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $210,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. 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.