Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) Shares Sold by New York Life Investment Management LLC

New York Life Investment Management LLC lessened its position in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 69,302 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,219 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $4,198,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CNC. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 75.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 412 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in Centene by 75.3% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in Centene during the 3rd quarter valued at $66,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Centene during the 4th quarter worth $82,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Centene by 77.3% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,163 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CNC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $75.00 target price (down previously from $80.00) on shares of Centene in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Argus downgraded Centene from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Centene from $66.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Centene from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $68.00 to $52.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Centene presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.92.

Centene Price Performance

NYSE CNC opened at $58.06 on Friday. Centene Co. has a 1 year low of $55.03 and a 1 year high of $80.59. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $60.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $65.18. The company has a market cap of $28.80 billion, a PE ratio of 9.30, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last issued 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. Centene had a net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The business had revenue of $40.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.45 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Centene Co. will post 6.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Thomas Greco acquired 17,000 shares of Centene stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $59.75 per share, with a total value of $1,015,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 19,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,153,712.75. This trade represents a 736.25 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Theodore R. Samuels II purchased 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $58.86 per share, with a total value of $294,300.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 23,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,353,780. This represents a 27.78 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have acquired 23,693 shares of company stock worth $1,409,954. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.