Centene Corporation $CNC Shares Sold by QV Investors Inc.

QV Investors Inc. lessened its stake in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 307,772 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,360 shares during the quarter. Centene makes up about 1.5% of QV Investors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. QV Investors Inc.’s holdings in Centene were worth $19,756,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Centene during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new stake in Centene in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Centene by 118.4% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 406 shares in the last quarter. MidFirst Bank purchased a new stake in Centene during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Bayban purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CNC. Bank of America lifted their price target on Centene from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. UBS Group set a $79.00 price objective on Centene in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Centene from $46.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on shares of Centene from $60.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $65.00 price target (up from $47.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $70.05.

Centene Price Performance

NYSE:CNC opened at $64.91 on Monday. Centene Corporation has a one year low of $28.24 and a one year high of $69.36. The stock has a market cap of $32.07 billion, a PE ratio of -6.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.15. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $65.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $53.35.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $1.42. Centene had a positive return on equity of 12.12% and a negative net margin of 2.51%.The company had revenue of $53.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.16) EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Centene Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 56,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.90, for a total transaction of $3,779,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 248,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,648,332.60. This trade represents a 18.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

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.