Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 1,779,704 Shares of Centene Corporation $CNC

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans trimmed its stake in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 98.1% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 34,355 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,779,704 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Centene were worth $1,226,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. National Pension Service increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,042,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,209,000 after buying an additional 111,347 shares during the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new position in Centene in the third quarter valued at $1,100,000. Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in Centene by 1.1% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 146,641 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,232,000 after purchasing an additional 1,652 shares in the last quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp lifted its stake in Centene by 126.5% during the third quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 8,842 shares of the company’s stock worth $315,000 after purchasing an additional 4,938 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Global Investments purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the 3rd quarter worth about $434,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Stock Up 3.4%

Shares of NYSE CNC opened at $40.53 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $42.13 and its 200 day moving average is $36.29. Centene Corporation has a 52 week low of $25.08 and a 52 week high of $66.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The company has a market cap of $19.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.98, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.48.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The company reported ($1.19) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.22) by $0.03. Centene had a negative net margin of 3.43% and a positive return on equity of 4.25%. The business had revenue of $49.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.41 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 21.9% on a year-over-year basis. Centene has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.000-3.000 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on CNC shares. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Centene from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Centene from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Centene from $25.00 to $32.00 in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $41.00 target price on shares of Centene in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Centene currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $41.50.

About Centene

Centene Corporation (NYSE: CNC) is a diversified, multi-national healthcare enterprise that specializes in providing services to government-sponsored and national health programs. The company primarily acts as a managed care organization, delivering healthcare coverage and administering benefits for Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Medicare Advantage, and individual marketplace plans. Centene also contracts with federal and state agencies to manage specialty care programs and community-based services for vulnerable populations.

Centene’s offerings extend beyond traditional insurance to include a range of specialty and support services.