Centene (NYSE:CNC) Price Target Raised to $82.00 at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

Centene (NYSE:CNC) had its price objective increased by Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $81.00 to $82.00 in a report published on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a hold rating on the stock.

Several other research firms also recently commented on CNC. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an overweight rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Oppenheimer reissued an outperform rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a report on Monday. StockNews.com raised shares of Centene from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report on Monday. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Centene in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an overweight rating and a $101.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Centene from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $85.00.

Centene Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of CNC stock opened at $73.06 on Tuesday. Centene has a 52-week low of $60.83 and a 52-week high of $81.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.08 billion, a PE ratio of 14.52, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $76.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $74.86.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.17. Centene had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 14.19%. The business had revenue of $40.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.43 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.11 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Centene will post 6.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total value of $900,840.00. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 235,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,668,850.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total transaction of $900,840.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 235,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,668,850.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.41, for a total transaction of $774,100.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,455 shares in the company, valued at $886,731.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Centene

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CNC. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Centene during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,325,441,000. Harris Associates L P increased its holdings in Centene by 172.8% during the fourth quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 10,863,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $806,170,000 after buying an additional 6,881,450 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in Centene by 535.9% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,837,980 shares of the company’s stock valued at $136,396,000 after buying an additional 1,548,961 shares during the period. Canoe Financial LP increased its holdings in Centene by 375.1% during the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 1,943,982 shares of the company’s stock valued at $144,263,000 after buying an additional 1,534,826 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Centene by 8.7% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,788,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $605,351,000 after buying an additional 704,684 shares during the period. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.