Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) Shares Bought by Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc.

Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. boosted its position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 10.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 740,837 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 69,455 shares during the period. Natera makes up approximately 1.3% of Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc.’s holdings in Natera were worth $117,274,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Securities Inc. grew its position in Natera by 20.7% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC grew its position in Natera by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 3,629 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $574,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated grew its position in Natera by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 2,963 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $470,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Natera by 104.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 190 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. grew its position in Natera by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 998 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $158,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Price Performance

Natera stock opened at $148.22 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $163.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $148.83. 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, Inc. has a 1 year low of $83.13 and a 1 year high of $183.00. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The medical research company reported ($0.41) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $476.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $447.91 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.01% and a negative return on equity of 26.23%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Natera

In other Natera news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 43,502 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.88, for a total transaction of $7,694,633.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 70,629 shares in the company, valued at $12,492,857.52. The trade was a 38.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Steven Leonard Chapman sold 78,553 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.97, for a total transaction of $12,958,888.41. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 267,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $44,150,756.13. This trade represents a 22.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 298,946 shares of company stock worth $47,803,462. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NTRA. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Natera from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Natera from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Natera from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.12.

About Natera

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.