Centene (NYSE:CNC) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Centene (NYSE:CNC) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Zacks reports.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Argus raised shares of Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. UBS Group set a $79.00 price objective on Centene in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $80.00 target price (up from $75.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Centene from $46.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Centene in a report on Friday, July 17th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.05.

Centene Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of CNC opened at $64.64 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $64.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $57.93. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $31.93 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 1.13. Centene has a 12-month low of $31.63 and a 12-month high of $69.63.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $1.42. The company had revenue of $53.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.16) EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Centene will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Centene

In other Centene news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 56,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.90, for a total value of $3,779,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 248,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,648,332.60. The trade was a 18.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Centene

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Centene during the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,660,422,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Centene by 423.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,301,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $853,805,000 after purchasing an additional 10,757,914 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Centene by 12.4% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,517,580 shares of the company’s stock valued at $354,173,000 after buying an additional 608,249 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Centene in the 2nd quarter worth about $285,713,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Centene in the 2nd quarter valued at $257,279,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

About Centene

Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) is a healthcare enterprise that provides health insurance and related services, primarily through government-sponsored programs. Its offerings include Medicaid plans, Medicare products, health plans sold through the Affordable Care Act marketplace, and services for military families through government-sponsored healthcare programs.

The company also provides pharmacy, behavioral health, specialty healthcare, care management and administrative services through various subsidiaries and partner organizations.