Russell Investments Group Ltd. Buys 456,350 Shares of Centene Corporation $CNC

Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 83.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,001,316 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 456,350 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Centene were worth $35,628,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Baird Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Centene in the first quarter worth $236,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Centene by 80.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 9,710 shares of the company’s stock valued at $527,000 after buying an additional 4,315 shares during the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Centene by 19.8% in the 2nd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,444 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 734 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its position in Centene by 9.7% during the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 114,266 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,202,000 after acquiring an additional 10,121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of Centene by 142.9% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 10,656 shares of the company’s stock valued at $578,000 after purchasing an additional 6,269 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Centene from $32.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Truist Financial upped their price target on Centene from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Centene from $28.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Centene from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $44.00 price target on shares of Centene and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.06.

Key Stories Impacting Centene

Here are the key news stories impacting Centene this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Superior HealthPlan (a Centene unit) named a Rio Grande Valley provider a Foster Care Center of Excellence — a local operating win that supports managed‑care positioning in Texas. Superior HealthPlan Names Cute Pediatrics as First Rio Grande Valley Provider to Earn Foster Care Distinction
• Positive Sentiment: Company update: Centene reaffirmed its 2026 outlook and redeemed certain debt notes — signaling liquidity/commitment to guidance despite near‑term headwinds. Centene Reaffirms 2026 Outlook and Redeems Debt Notes
• Neutral Sentiment: Management presentation/transcript from Barclays conference is available — useful for detail on guidance and membership trends but did not offset market concern. Centene Corporation (CNC) Presents at Barclays 28th Annual Global Healthcare Conference Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry context: analysts note HMO names face cost pressure, nursing shortages and policy risk — structural headwinds that increase sensitivity to ACA enrollment swings. 4 HMO Stocks to Watch Despite Escalating Costs, Nursing Shortage
• Negative Sentiment: CEO warning of a steep ACA membership decline: management said individual-market enrollment may fall to ~3.5M from ~5.5M — a dramatic reduction that directly cuts revenue and hurts margins, and was cited as the primary catalyst for the selloff. Centene (CNC) Stock Plunges 14% as CEO Warns of Massive ACA Enrollment Decline
• Negative Sentiment: News and market reactions: multiple outlets report shares falling after executives flagged steeper ACA membership losses; Mizuho and other analysts lowered targets/expressed caution. Centene shares fall as health insurer sees steeper drop in Obamacare memberships
• Negative Sentiment: Broader coverage: stories framing the “slow death” of enhanced ACA subsidies and plunging enrollment directly link the policy shift to Centene’s weakness. Obamacare’s Slow Death Is Debilitating Centene Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Market signals: unusually high put‑option volume and elevated trading volume show short/bear positioning and higher conviction among downside traders, amplifying price moves.

Centene Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE CNC opened at $35.91 on Thursday. Centene Corporation has a 52-week low of $25.08 and a 52-week high of $66.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The business has a fifty day moving average of $43.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.32. The stock has a market cap of $17.66 billion, a PE ratio of -2.64, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.48.

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

About Centene

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.