Sanford C. Bernstein Lowers Centene (NYSE:CNC) Price Target to $88.00

Centene (NYSE:CNC) had its price objective cut by analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from $96.00 to $88.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 41.34% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on CNC. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Centene from $97.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Centene from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $83.00 to $69.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Centene from $83.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Centene from $93.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.00.

Centene Price Performance

Centene stock opened at $62.26 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $32.75 billion, a PE ratio of 10.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.48. Centene has a 52-week low of $59.77 and a 52-week high of $81.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company’s 50 day moving average is $71.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.02.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Centene

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CNC. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Centene by 18.7% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 624,944 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,046,000 after buying an additional 98,298 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Centene by 435.0% in the 1st quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 20,052 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,574,000 after buying an additional 16,304 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Centene by 35.8% in the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 28,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,857,000 after buying an additional 7,385 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Centene by 189.6% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 24,162 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,895,000 after buying an additional 15,819 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Comerica Bank raised its stake in Centene by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 118,597 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,307,000 after acquiring an additional 8,103 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

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.