Centene (NYSE:CNC) Given New $41.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) had its target price lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $45.00 to $41.00 in a report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Centene from $28.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Centene from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Centene in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $59.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Centene from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $41.81.

Centene Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of CNC stock opened at $35.57 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $17.49 billion, a PE ratio of -2.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.48. Centene has a 1 year low of $25.08 and a 1 year high of $66.03. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The company reported ($1.19) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.22) by $0.03. Centene had a positive return on equity of 4.25% and a negative net margin of 3.43%.The firm had revenue of $49.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $48.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.80 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 21.9% on a year-over-year basis. Centene has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.000-3.000 EPS. Research analysts predict that Centene will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centene

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Centene during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,435,997,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Centene by 117.0% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 31,798,738 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,308,518,000 after purchasing an additional 17,143,904 shares in the last quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. increased its holdings in Centene by 184.0% during the 3rd quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. now owns 9,046,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $322,761,000 after purchasing an additional 5,860,630 shares during the period. 8 Knots Management LLC bought a new stake in Centene during the 3rd quarter valued at $186,662,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Centene by 52.6% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,171,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,111,000 after buying an additional 2,472,341 shares during the period. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.