Centene (NYSE:CNC) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Centene (NYSE:CNC) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Sunday morning.

CNC has been the subject of several other research reports. Barclays set a $44.00 price objective on shares of Centene and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Centene from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Argus upgraded Centene to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $59.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $43.00 price target on Centene and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Centene has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $41.81.

Centene Stock Performance

CNC opened at $40.53 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $42.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $36.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The company has a market capitalization of $19.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.48. Centene has a 1-year low of $25.08 and a 1-year high of $66.03.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 6th. The company reported ($1.19) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.22) by $0.03. Centene had a positive return on equity of 4.25% and a negative net margin of 3.43%.The company had revenue of $49.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.80 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 21.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Centene has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.000-3.000 EPS. Research analysts predict that Centene will post 6.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Centene

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Addison Advisors LLC increased its stake in Centene by 455.6% in the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 739 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 606 shares during the period. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Centene during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Centene by 118.4% during the fourth quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC grew its stake in Centene by 44.5% in the third quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 915 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares in the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Centene Company Profile

Centene Corporation (NYSE: CNC) is a diversified, multi-national healthcare enterprise that specializes in providing services to government-sponsored and national health programs. The company primarily acts as a managed care organization, delivering healthcare coverage and administering benefits for Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Medicare Advantage, and individual marketplace plans. Centene also contracts with federal and state agencies to manage specialty care programs and community-based services for vulnerable populations.

Centene’s offerings extend beyond traditional insurance to include a range of specialty and support services.