Boston Partners Purchases 2,373,280 Shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC)

Boston Partners boosted its position in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 155.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,901,603 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,373,280 shares during the period. Boston Partners owned approximately 0.78% of Centene worth $236,802,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CNC. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new stake in Centene in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in Centene in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Studio Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Centene during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Centene by 203.1% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its stake in Centene by 273.8% during the 1st quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Centene Price Performance

Centene stock opened at $27.09 on Thursday. Centene Corporation has a 12 month low of $25.08 and a 12 month high of $80.59. 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 business’s 50 day simple moving average is $38.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.52. The company has a market cap of $13.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.71, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.40.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 25th. The company reported ($0.16) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.39). Centene had a net margin of 1.15% and a return on equity of 9.57%. The firm had revenue of $48.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $44.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. Centene’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Centene

In other news, CEO Sarah London acquired 19,230 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $25.50 per share, for a total transaction of $490,365.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 845,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,554,512.50. This trade represents a 2.33% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Theodore R. Samuels II bought 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $27.62 per share, for a total transaction of $248,580.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 32,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,840. This trade represents a 39.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Centene from $68.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Centene from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Centene from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $72.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Bank of America downgraded Centene from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $52.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $42.20.

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.