Guided Capital Wealth Management LLC Invests $1.79 Million in Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA)

Guided Capital Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 11,294 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,788,000. Natera comprises 1.6% of Guided Capital Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Savant Capital LLC increased its position in Natera by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 18,933 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,997,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Natera by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,345 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $371,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Natera during the fourth quarter worth $79,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its holdings in Natera by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 740,837 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $117,274,000 after buying an additional 69,455 shares during the period. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated increased its holdings in Natera by 3.1% in the 4th 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. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ NTRA opened at $169.71 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $167.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $141.94. The company has a market cap of $22.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -96.43 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a quick ratio of 4.23, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Natera, Inc. has a 12-month low of $67.33 and a 12-month high of $183.00.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The medical research company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $439.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $361.43 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.95) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 63.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on NTRA shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Natera from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $120.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Craig Hallum boosted their price target on shares of Natera from $121.00 to $157.00 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 assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $165.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natera

In other news, CFO Michael Burkes Brophy sold 43,502 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.88, for a total value of $7,694,633.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 70,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,492,857.52. This represents a 38.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Fesko sold 663 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 156,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,739,941.88. This trade represents a 0.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 312,394 shares of company stock worth $52,333,520. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

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.