Robert W. Baird Raises Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) Price Target to $257.00

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) had its price target upped by investment analysts at Robert W. Baird from $239.00 to $257.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the medical research company’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s target price points to a potential upside of 23.53% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised their target price on Natera from $218.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Natera from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a research note on Monday, January 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Natera from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Natera in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Natera has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $254.47.

Natera Stock Down 3.7%

NTRA stock opened at $208.04 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.78 billion, a PE ratio of -135.97 and a beta of 1.64. Natera has a 52 week low of $125.38 and a 52 week high of $256.36. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $226.52 and a 200 day moving average of $203.85.

Natera (NASDAQ:NTRA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The medical research company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.46) by $0.81. Natera had a negative net margin of 9.03% and a negative return on equity of 16.71%. The business had revenue of $665.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $600.68 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.41) EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Natera will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Solomon Moshkevich sold 1,639 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.77, for a total transaction of $378,232.03. Following the sale, the insider owned 137,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,810,952.19. This trade represents a 1.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider John Fesko sold 3,594 shares of Natera stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.02, for a total transaction of $830,285.88. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 178,081 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,140,272.62. This trade represents a 1.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 368,119 shares of company stock worth $85,956,782. 5.63% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Natera

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Horizon Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Natera by 22.0% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 244 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Natera by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 270 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Savvy Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Natera by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Savvy Advisors Inc. now owns 1,541 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $353,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH increased its position in shares of Natera by 3.1% in the third quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 1,804 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $290,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alamea Verwaltungs GmbH raised its stake in shares of Natera by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Alamea Verwaltungs GmbH now owns 2,229 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $515,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. 99.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Natera News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Natera this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly beat — Natera reported Q4 revenue of $665.5M and GAAP EPS of $0.35, well ahead of street estimates (revenue ~$600.7M, EPS loss consensus). The beat supports near-term growth expectations and underpins the stock’s recent strength. Natera Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Favorable clinical data — New Signatera MRD data presented at ASCO GU highlight potential utility across genitourinary cancers (including bladder preservation), which may expand clinical adoption and long-term revenue for Natera’s oncology franchise. Signatera MRD Data at ASCO GU
• Positive Sentiment: Trial results — Natera reported results from the SINERGY trial, another clinical datapoint that could support commercial adoption of its assays. Natera Announces Results From the SINERGY Trial
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades/targets — Robert W. Baird raised its price target to $257 (outperform) and Wells Fargo raised its target to $215 (equal weight), signaling some sell-side confidence in upside from current levels. Benzinga – Analyst Price Target Changes
• Neutral Sentiment: Full-year revenue guidance roughly in line with consensus — Management issued FY2026 revenue guidance (roughly $2.6B–$2.7B), which appears consistent with street expectations and reduces upside surprise potential from guidance alone. (See Q4 release for guidance details.) Natera Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst consensus — Aggregated analyst coverage remains constructive (average “Moderate Buy”), which supports medium-term expectations but doesn’t preclude short-term volatility. Analyst Average Rating
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and fundamentals concerns — Despite the beat, Natera still shows negative net margin and negative return on equity on a GAAP basis; combined with a high market capitalization and a recent run-up toward 52-week highs, investors may be taking profits. MarketBeat Q4 Coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Heavy intraday volume and selling pressure — Trading volume was well above average, consistent with a distribution day where some holders trimmed positions after the company’s strong quarter; that drove the stock lower despite the positives. (See intraday volume and price action for context.)

Natera Company Profile

Natera is a global diagnostics company that develops and commercializes cell-free DNA and other genetic testing technologies for clinical applications. The company focuses on three principal areas: reproductive health (including non-invasive prenatal testing and carrier screening), oncology (tumor-informed assays for minimal residual disease and recurrence monitoring), and organ transplantation (cell-free DNA tests to detect allograft injury). Natera combines laboratory testing, proprietary bioinformatics, and clinical reporting to deliver personalized genetic information to clinicians and patients.

Key product offerings include Panorama, a non-invasive prenatal test that screens for fetal chromosomal abnormalities and select single-gene conditions; Horizon carrier screening for inherited conditions; Signatera, a personalized, tumor-informed assay used for detecting minimal residual disease and monitoring treatment response in cancer patients; and Prospera, a donor-derived cell-free DNA test used to assess the risk of organ rejection.