Centene (NYSE:CNC) had its price objective upped by Citigroup from $80.00 to $86.00 in a research note released on Thursday morning, The Fly reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the stock.
A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on CNC. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Centene from $87.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Centene from $88.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Thursday. They noted that the move was a valuation call. TheStreet raised Centene from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a report on Thursday, April 1st. Truist Securities upped their target price on Centene from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued a buy rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Centene in a report on Thursday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. The company has an average rating of Buy and an average target price of $81.91.
Centene stock opened at $74.31 on Thursday. Centene has a 12 month low of $53.60 and a 12 month high of $75.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The business’s 50 day moving average is $68.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.30 billion, a PE ratio of 17.74, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.47.
Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 26th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.04. Centene had a return on equity of 13.09% and a net margin of 2.14%. The firm had revenue of $29.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $29.55 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.86 earnings per share. Centene’s quarterly revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Centene will post 5.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.
In related news, EVP Brent D. Layton sold 7,682 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total transaction of $499,330.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 424,808 shares in the company, valued at $27,612,520. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John R. Roberts sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $350,000.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 89,883 shares of company stock worth $6,150,940 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNC. JJJ Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Summit Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Van ECK Associates Corp purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Barrett Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 800.0% in the 1st quarter. Barrett Asset Management LLC now owns 450 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.77% of the company’s stock.
Centene Company Profile
Centene Corporation operates as a multi-national healthcare enterprise that provides programs and services to under-insured and uninsured individuals in the United States. Its Managed Care segment offers health plan coverage to individuals through government subsidized programs, including Medicaid, the State children's health insurance program, long-term services and support, foster care, and medicare-medicaid plans, which cover dually eligible individuals, as well as aged, blind, or disabled programs.
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