Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) Shares Sold by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank cut its position in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,486,024 shares of the company’s stock after selling 97,200 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.29% of Centene worth $90,023,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 32.9% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 16,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $997,000 after purchasing an additional 4,077 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Centene by 76.0% in the fourth quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 7,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $459,000 after buying an additional 3,273 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Centene by 25.8% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. AGF Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Centene by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 48,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,949,000 after buying an additional 2,524 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its stake in shares of Centene by 25.3% in the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 3,784 shares of the company’s stock worth $229,000 after buying an additional 765 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Thomas Greco acquired 17,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were bought at an average price of $59.75 per share, with a total value of $1,015,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 19,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,153,712.75. This represents a 736.25 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director H James Dallas acquired 1,693 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $59.01 per share, for a total transaction of $99,903.93. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $99,903.93. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Centene Stock Performance

NYSE CNC opened at $58.27 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $28.90 billion, a PE ratio of 9.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.40. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $60.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.93. Centene Co. has a 1-year low of $55.03 and a 1-year high of $80.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $40.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.78 billion. Centene had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 2.03%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Centene Co. will post 6.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on CNC shares. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Centene from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $75.00 target price (down previously from $80.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Centene from $76.00 to $72.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Stephens lowered their price target on Centene from $75.00 to $73.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Centene from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $79.92.

Centene 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.