Barclays PLC Has $17.64 Million Stock Holdings in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Barclays PLC lowered its stake in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 20.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 111,411 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 28,704 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC’s holdings in Natera were worth $17,635,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Natera by 43.7% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,701,425 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,060,836,000 after purchasing an additional 2,036,396 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Natera during the fourth quarter worth $224,040,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Natera during the fourth quarter worth $146,419,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Natera by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,316,470 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,949,697,000 after acquiring an additional 879,463 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Natera by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,240,041 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $512,898,000 after purchasing an additional 439,778 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Natera

In other news, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.48, for a total transaction of $421,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 141,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,917,535.36. This represents a 2.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 156,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,739,941.88. The trade was a 0.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 325,922 shares of company stock valued at $51,603,664. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on NTRA shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a report on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Natera from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Natera in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.76.

Natera Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NTRA opened at $148.08 on Friday. Natera, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.10 and a 1 year high of $183.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -84.14 and a beta of 1.80. 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’s 50 day simple moving average is $150.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $152.82.

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, topping the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 26.23% and a negative net margin of 14.01%. As a group, research analysts predict that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.