Avior Wealth Management LLC Acquires 2,355 Shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 222.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,412 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,355 shares during the quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Natera were worth $540,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Natera by 345.8% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 214 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its position in shares of Natera by 148.4% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 318 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted 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 acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Natera by 32.7% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 430 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in Natera in the third quarter valued at $57,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Price Performance

NTRA opened at $167.61 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $166.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.25. Natera, Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.96 and a 52-week high of $183.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.13 billion, a PE ratio of -95.23 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 4.23 and a current ratio of 4.39.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) 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 analyst estimates of $361.43 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.95) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 63.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Natera, Inc. will post -1.56 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Natera from $132.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Leerink Partners upped their target price on Natera from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. StockNews.com cut shares of Natera from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Natera from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Natera from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.94.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 78,553 shares of the 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 directly owns 267,629 shares in the company, valued at $44,150,756.13. This trade represents a 22.69 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 946 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.98, for a total transaction of $162,693.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 109,474 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,827,338.52. This trade represents a 0.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 249,940 shares of company stock valued at $41,094,664 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

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.