Stephens Lowers Centene (NYSE:CNC) Price Target to $73.00

Centene (NYSE:CNC) had its price target trimmed by Stephens from $75.00 to $73.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

CNC has been the topic of several other reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Centene from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Centene from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $68.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on shares of Centene from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.31.

Centene Price Performance

NYSE:CNC opened at $59.42 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $68.58. Centene has a 1-year low of $55.03 and a 1-year high of $81.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.00 billion, a PE ratio of 10.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.46.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher bought 17,200 shares of Centene stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $58.14 per share, with a total value of $1,000,008.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 486,847 shares in the company, valued at $28,305,284.58. This trade represents a 3.66 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Sarah London purchased 4,117 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $60.80 per share, with a total value of $250,313.60. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 667,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $40,567,523.20. This represents a 0.62 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Centene

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harris Associates L P increased its stake in Centene by 5.7% in the third quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 26,314,183 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,980,932,000 after acquiring an additional 1,420,825 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Centene by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 23,468,159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,766,683,000 after purchasing an additional 111,654 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,768,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $434,255,000 after buying an additional 194,566 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in Centene by 0.5% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,491,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $364,117,000 after buying an additional 25,595 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Centene by 14.2% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,113,759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $339,042,000 after acquiring an additional 636,683 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently 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.