Quantbot Technologies LP Makes New $8.12 Million Investment in Centene Corporation $CNC

Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 126,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,123,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Centene by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 56,978,753 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,344,676,000 after purchasing an additional 190,334 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Centene in the second quarter valued at $2,660,422,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Centene by 117.0% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 31,798,738 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,308,518,000 after buying an additional 17,143,904 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Centene by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,271,492 shares of the company’s stock worth $554,338,000 after buying an additional 697,277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deerfield Management Company L.P. grew its stake in Centene by 184.0% in the 3rd quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. now owns 9,046,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $322,761,000 after acquiring an additional 5,860,630 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Centene

In related news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 47,603 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.36, for a total value of $3,111,332.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 305,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,957,937.44. This represents a 13.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of CNC opened at $64.94 on Friday. Centene Corporation has a 1 year low of $28.24 and a 1 year high of $69.36. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $64.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.40. The company has a market capitalization of $32.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.22, a PEG ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.15.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $1.42. Centene had a negative net margin of 2.51% and a positive return on equity of 12.12%. The firm had revenue of $53.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.16) EPS. Centene’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Centene Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on CNC shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Centene from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $69.00 target price on Centene and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Centene from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. Zacks Research raised Centene from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $79.00 price objective on Centene in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.05.

Centene Company 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.