Centene (NYSE:CNC) PT Raised to $82.00

Centene (NYSE:CNC) had its target price boosted by analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $81.00 to $82.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “hold” rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 11.44% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on CNC. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Centene from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. StockNews.com upgraded Centene from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $85.00 price target (down from $92.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.00.

Centene Price Performance

Shares of CNC stock traded down $0.25 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $73.58. 1,740,144 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,105,939. Centene has a 52 week low of $60.83 and a 52 week high of $81.42. The stock has a market cap of $39.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $76.22 and its 200-day moving average is $74.85.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.17. Centene had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 14.19%. The firm had revenue of $40.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.11 EPS. Centene’s revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Centene will post 6.75 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Centene

In related news, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of Centene stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.41, for a total transaction of $774,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $886,731.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.41, for a total transaction of $774,100.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $886,731.55. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total transaction of $900,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 235,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,668,850.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centene

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. QV Investors Inc. lifted its holdings in Centene by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. QV Investors Inc. now owns 305,277 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,655,000 after buying an additional 33,350 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its stake in Centene by 23.6% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,215,997 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,239,000 after purchasing an additional 231,931 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Preferred LLC bought a new position in Centene in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,349,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 57.8% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 187,958 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,941,000 after purchasing an additional 68,854 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in Centene by 17.7% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 286,205 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,239,000 after purchasing an additional 43,118 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.