Waddell & Associates LLC Buys 20,621 Shares of Centene Corporation $CNC

Waddell & Associates LLC boosted its position in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 177.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 32,237 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,621 shares during the quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $1,327,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Centene by 455.6% in the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 739 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 606 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Centene by 118.4% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares in the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in shares of Centene during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Trading Up 4.5%

Shares of Centene stock opened at $65.11 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12. Centene Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $25.08 and a fifty-two week high of $65.80. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.55. The company has a market cap of $32.15 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.09.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $1.14. Centene had a positive return on equity of 5.57% and a negative net margin of 3.25%.The business had revenue of $49.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $47.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.90 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Centene Corporation will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on CNC shares. Wall Street Zen raised Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Argus upgraded shares of Centene to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Mizuho set a $63.00 target price on shares of Centene and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Centene from $48.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Centene from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $60.24.

Centene Profile

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.