Quantbot Technologies LP Increases Holdings in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its stake in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 424.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 162,108 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 131,176 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Centene were worth $9,821,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sciencast Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter worth about $2,743,000. Sector Gamma AS grew its stake in Centene by 78.9% in the fourth quarter. Sector Gamma AS now owns 170,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,299,000 after purchasing an additional 75,000 shares during the last quarter. Semanteon Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Centene by 12.9% in the fourth quarter. Semanteon Capital Management LP now owns 8,887 shares of the company’s stock valued at $538,000 after acquiring an additional 1,014 shares in the last quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC increased its position in Centene by 128.9% during the 4th quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC now owns 24,016 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,455,000 after buying an additional 13,523 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its stake in Centene by 57.4% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 390,002 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,626,000 after purchasing an additional 142,195 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group cut Centene from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $68.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Centene from $89.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of Centene from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Argus lowered shares of Centene from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $79.92.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CNC opened at $57.83 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.40. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $60.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $64.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Centene Co. has a 52-week low of $55.03 and a 52-week high of $80.59.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $40.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.78 billion. Centene had a net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The company’s revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Centene Co. will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Centene

In other Centene news, Director H James Dallas acquired 1,693 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was bought at an average price of $59.01 per share, for a total transaction of $99,903.93. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,693 shares in the company, valued at $99,903.93. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Thomas Greco acquired 17,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was bought at an average price of $59.75 per share, for a total transaction of $1,015,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, 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 position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Centene

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.