Centene Corporation $CNC Holdings Raised by Caerus Investment Advisors LLC

Caerus Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 334.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,597 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 32,791 shares during the quarter. Centene makes up approximately 0.6% of Caerus Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest position. Caerus Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $1,753,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Oracle Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Centene in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $3,936,000. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC grew its stake in Centene by 451.2% during the 3rd quarter. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC now owns 181,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,490,000 after buying an additional 148,900 shares during the last quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC grew its stake in Centene by 161.1% during the 3rd quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC now owns 91,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,281,000 after buying an additional 56,730 shares during the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its stake in Centene by 22.1% during the 3rd quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 1,075,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,356,000 after buying an additional 194,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kennondale Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Centene by 500.0% during the 3rd quarter. Kennondale Capital Management LLC now owns 48,978 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,748,000 after buying an additional 40,815 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Centene Stock Down 2.8%

CNC stock opened at $63.53 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $31.37 billion, a PE ratio of -4.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.09. Centene Corporation has a 12 month low of $25.08 and a 12 month high of $66.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $50.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $44.17.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $1.14. The company had revenue of $49.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.53 billion. Centene had a positive return on equity of 5.57% and a negative net margin of 3.25%.The firm’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.90 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Centene Corporation will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Mizuho set a $63.00 price objective on Centene and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Zacks Research raised Centene from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Centene from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $61.00 target price (up from $55.00) on shares of Centene in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Centene from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Centene has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $60.24.

About Centene

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.