Meitav Dash Investments Ltd. Sells 20,000 Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Meitav Dash Investments Ltd. decreased its position in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC – Get Rating) by 11.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 152,061 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,000 shares during the quarter. Meitav Dash Investments Ltd.’s holdings in Centene were worth $12,802,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CNC. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Centene in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its stake in shares of Centene by 269.3% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 325 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Centene during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Centene during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Sageworth Trust Co of South Dakota acquired a new stake in Centene in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 92.32% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Centene news, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.77, for a total transaction of $111,324.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,908 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $919,165.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.77, for a total transaction of $111,324.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,908 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $919,165.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard A. Gephardt sold 10,220 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.03, for a total transaction of $858,786.60. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 27,040 shares in the company, valued at $2,272,171.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 28,200 shares of company stock valued at $2,458,274. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CNC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Centene from $112.00 to $103.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 23rd. Barclays began coverage on Centene in a research report on Thursday, July 28th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $107.00 target price for the company. Credit Suisse Group set a $97.00 target price on Centene in a research report on Tuesday, July 19th. Bank of America downgraded Centene from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Centene to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Centene presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.50.

Centene Stock Up 0.1 %

Centene stock opened at $93.05 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $53.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Centene Co. has a fifty-two week low of $59.67 and a fifty-two week high of $94.58. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $85.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $84.09.

Centene (NYSE:CNC – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 26th. The company reported $1.77 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $35.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.56 billion. Centene had a net margin of 1.35% and a return on equity of 12.92%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Centene Co. will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Centene declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Friday, June 17th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 6.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Centene Company Profile

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Centene Corporation operates as a multi-national healthcare enterprise that provides programs and services to under-insured and uninsured individuals in the United States. Its Managed Care segment offers health plan coverage to individuals through government subsidized programs, including Medicaid, the State children's health insurance program, long-term services and support, foster care, and medicare-medicaid plans, which cover dually eligible individuals, as well as aged, blind, or disabled programs.