Bayforest Capital Ltd Takes Position in Centene Corporation $CNC

Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 9,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $489,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CNC. Polianta Ltd acquired a new stake in Centene during the second quarter worth about $1,253,000. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC purchased a new stake in Centene in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,033,000. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in shares of Centene by 83.1% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 42,270 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,566,000 after purchasing an additional 19,181 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,810,489 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,045,000 after purchasing an additional 143,573 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Centene during the second quarter valued at $493,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Price Performance

NYSE:CNC opened at $36.42 on Wednesday. Centene Corporation has a one year low of $25.08 and a one year high of $71.04. The stock has a market cap of $17.89 billion, a PE ratio of 9.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $31.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.17.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported ($0.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.39). Centene had a net margin of 1.15% and a return on equity of 9.57%. The company had revenue of $48.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $44.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.42 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 22.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Centene has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.750-1.750 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on CNC. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Centene from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Centene from $28.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company set a $41.00 price objective on Centene and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Centene in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Centene from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $39.50.

Insider Transactions at Centene

In other Centene news, CEO Sarah London acquired 19,230 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $25.50 per share, for a total transaction of $490,365.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 845,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,554,512.50. The trade was a 2.33% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Theodore R. Samuels II bought 9,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $27.62 per share, with a total value of $248,580.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 32,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $883,840. The trade was a 39.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Centene Company 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.