Centene (NYSE:CNC) Earns “Outperform” Rating from Oppenheimer

Centene (NYSE:CNC)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating restated by stock analysts at Oppenheimer in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $110.00 target price on the stock. Oppenheimer’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 48.59% from the company’s current price.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price target (down previously from $92.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Barclays assumed coverage on Centene in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $101.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Centene from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.25.

Centene Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of CNC traded up $0.03 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $74.03. 2,600,995 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,090,520. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.60 billion, a PE ratio of 14.70, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.38. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $74.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.17. Centene has a 52 week low of $60.83 and a 52 week high of $81.42.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.17. Centene had a net margin of 1.76% and a return on equity of 14.19%. The company had revenue of $40.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.11 EPS. Centene’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Centene will post 6.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Centene

In other Centene news, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.41, for a total transaction of $774,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $886,731.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total value of $900,840.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 235,365 shares in the company, valued at $17,668,850.55. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.41, for a total value of $774,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $886,731.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centene

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Operose Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Centene during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Centene during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Centene during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

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.