Centene’s (CNC) Equal Weight Rating Reaffirmed at Stephens

Centene (NYSE:CNC)‘s stock had its “equal weight” rating restated by investment analysts at Stephens in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $78.00 price objective on the stock. Stephens’ target price suggests a potential upside of 0.31% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Centene from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $83.00 to $69.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Centene from $81.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of Centene in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $83.00 target price on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on Centene from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on Centene from $80.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.36.

Centene Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of CNC traded down $0.33 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $77.76. The company had a trading volume of 1,272,609 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,510,193. Centene has a 1-year low of $60.83 and a 1-year high of $81.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $68.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.63. The stock has a market cap of $40.90 billion, a PE ratio of 15.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.50.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 26th. The company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.02). Centene had a return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 1.79%. The firm had revenue of $39.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.83 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.10 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Centene will post 6.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Centene

In other news, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.62, for a total transaction of $620,960.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 300,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,313,710.34. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Christopher J. Coughlin sold 878 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.75, for a total value of $67,386.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,504 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,957,432. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.62, for a total transaction of $620,960.00. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 300,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,313,710.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centene

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNC. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Centene in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Centene in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Centene during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its holdings in Centene by 41.4% in the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 468 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the period. Finally, Riverview Trust Co increased its stake in Centene by 154.6% during the 2nd quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Centene

Centene Corporation operates as a healthcare enterprise that provides programs and services to under-insured and uninsured families, commercial organizations, and military families in the United States. The company operates through Medicaid, Medicare, Commercial, and Other segments. The Medicaid segment offers health plan coverage, including medicaid expansion, aged, blind, disabled, children's health insurance program, foster care, medicare-medicaid plans, long-term services and support.