Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) Shares Sold by Martingale Asset Management L P

Martingale Asset Management L P lessened its holdings in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 31.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 236,081 shares of the company’s stock after selling 109,326 shares during the period. Martingale Asset Management L P’s holdings in Centene were worth $17,772,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CNC. WR Wealth Planners LLC raised its holdings in Centene by 41.4% during 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 last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 10.0% in the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,562 shares of the company’s stock worth $104,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 2.1% in the third quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,082 shares of the company’s stock worth $608,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 0.3% in the second quarter. Meridian Management Co. now owns 64,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,291,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Finally, E Fund Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 6.4% in the second quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,309 shares of the company’s stock worth $219,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Price Performance

CNC opened at $59.93 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $65.43 and a 200-day moving average of $70.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.40, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.49. Centene Co. has a 12-month low of $57.20 and a 12-month high of $81.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CNC. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Centene from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Centene from $83.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays decreased their price target on Centene from $97.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $83.92.

Insider Activity

In other Centene news, CEO Sarah London bought 4,117 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $60.80 per share, with a total value of $250,313.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 667,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $40,567,523.20. This represents a 0.62 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher bought 17,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $58.14 per share, for a total transaction of $1,000,008.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 486,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,305,284.58. The trade was a 3.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Centene Profile

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.