West Family Investments Inc. Purchases New Shares in Centene Corporation $CNC

West Family Investments Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 9,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $602,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CNC. DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in Centene during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Centene during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Centene by 118.4% in the fourth quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the period. MidFirst Bank bought a new position in Centene in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Bayban acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Centene Stock Performance

NYSE:CNC opened at $64.66 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $64.95 and its 200-day moving average is $52.16. Centene Corporation has a 1-year low of $28.24 and a 1-year high of $69.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market cap of $31.94 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.08.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on CNC shares. Stifel Nicolaus set a $79.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Morgan Stanley set a $66.00 price target on Centene in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $69.00 price target on Centene and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Raymond James Financial set a $75.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.05.

Insider Activity at Centene

In related news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 47,603 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.36, for a total value of $3,111,332.08. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 305,354 shares in the company, valued at $19,957,937.44. This represents a 13.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Centene 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.