StockNews.com Upgrades Centene (NYSE:CNC) to Strong-Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Centene (NYSE:CNC) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Monday.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Oppenheimer reiterated an outperform rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an overweight rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays assumed coverage on Centene in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an overweight rating and a $101.00 price objective on the stock. Stephens reiterated an equal weight rating and issued a $85.00 target price (down from $92.00) on shares of Centene in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $85.25.

Centene Stock Down 0.2 %

Centene stock opened at $73.83 on Monday. Centene has a 12 month low of $60.83 and a 12 month high of $81.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.49 billion, a PE ratio of 14.68, 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.17. Centene had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 14.19%. The company had revenue of $40.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.43 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.11 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Centene will post 6.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Centene

In other Centene news, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 12,000 shares of Centene stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total value of $900,840.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 235,365 shares in the company, valued at $17,668,850.55. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Centene news, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total value of $900,840.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 235,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,668,850.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of Centene stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centene

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Operose Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Centene during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Centene during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Centene Company Profile

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.