Baird Financial Group Inc. Has $4.50 Million Stock Holdings in Natera, Inc. $NTRA

Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRA) by 277.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,624 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,576 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Natera were worth $4,498,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NTRA. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in Natera by 83.5% during the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 233 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in shares of Natera in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Natera in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Natera during the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC lifted its position in shares of Natera by 1,857.1% during the 1st quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 274 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.90% of the company’s stock.

Natera Stock Performance

NASDAQ NTRA opened at $233.13 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $204.00 and a 200-day moving average of $175.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.25 billion, a P/E ratio of -101.80 and a beta of 1.63. Natera, Inc. has a 52 week low of $125.38 and a 52 week high of $246.90.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The medical research company reported ($0.64) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.39) by ($0.25). The firm had revenue of $592.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $514.55 million. Natera had a negative net margin of 14.61% and a negative return on equity of 25.07%. The company’s revenue was up 34.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.26) EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Natera, Inc. will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NTRA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stephens increased their price objective on Natera from $197.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Natera in a report on Monday. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Natera from $190.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Natera from $220.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 1st. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $225.29.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Rowan E. Chapman sold 4,366 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.10, for a total value of $1,061,374.60. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,777 shares in the company, valued at $1,404,388.70. This represents a 43.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Roy D. Baynes sold 7,668 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.08, for a total transaction of $1,710,577.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,359 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,095,525.72. The trade was a 29.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 312,053 shares of company stock worth $64,527,735. Corporate insiders own 5.63% 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.