Hsbc Holdings PLC Invests $62.74 Million in Centene Corporation $CNC

Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new stake in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 977,215 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $62,743,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned approximately 0.20% of Centene at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNC. DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Centene during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new stake in Centene in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Centene by 118.4% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares in the last quarter. MidFirst Bank acquired a new position in Centene during the second quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Bayban bought a new position in shares of Centene in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CNC opened at $65.35 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $32.28 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.08. The company’s 50-day moving average is $65.17 and its 200 day moving average is $52.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.15. Centene Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $28.24 and a fifty-two week high of $69.36.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 positive return on equity of 12.12% and a negative net margin of 2.51%.Centene’s revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.16) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Centene Corporation will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 47,603 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 305,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,957,937.44. This trade represents a 13.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $79.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $53.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Centene from $60.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Centene from $58.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Centene from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Centene presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $70.05.

Centene Company 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.