Centene (NYSE:CNC) Stock Rating Upgraded by UBS Group

Centene (NYSE:CNC) was upgraded by investment analysts at UBS Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Friday,Finviz reports. The firm currently has a $80.00 price objective on the stock, up from their prior price objective of $79.00. UBS Group’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 37.93% from the company’s previous close.

CNC has been the topic of several other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Centene from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays decreased their target price on Centene from $97.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on Centene from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Centene in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Centene from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.69.

Centene Price Performance

CNC stock opened at $58.00 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $62.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.73. Centene has a 12-month low of $55.03 and a 12-month high of $81.42. The company has a market capitalization of $29.28 billion, a PE ratio of 10.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher bought 17,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were bought 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 owns 486,847 shares in the company, valued at $28,305,284.58. This trade represents a 3.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sarah London purchased 4,117 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 667,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,567,523.20. The trade was a 0.62 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Centene

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Park Place Capital Corp increased its position in Centene by 1,190.0% during the 3rd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 387 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC raised its position in shares of Centene by 41.4% in the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 468 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Chris Bulman Inc purchased a new position in shares of Centene during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its position in Centene by 174.3% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 683 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 434 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in shares of Centene by 75.3% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the period. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.