Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) Director Theodore R. Samuels II Purchases 5,000 Shares

Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) Director Theodore R. Samuels II purchased 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $58.86 per share, with a total value of $294,300.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 23,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,353,780. The trade was a 27.78 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Centene Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CNC opened at $57.81 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $61.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $68.41. Centene Co. has a 12 month low of $55.03 and a 12 month high of $81.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.04, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.46.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on CNC. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Centene from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Centene from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $52.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. UBS Group raised shares of Centene from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Centene from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $80.92.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

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

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.