Centene Corporation $CNC Shares Acquired by MUFG Securities EMEA plc

MUFG Securities EMEA plc lifted its position in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 114.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,149 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,218 shares during the period. MUFG Securities EMEA plc’s holdings in Centene were worth $788,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Centene in the fourth quarter worth $332,044,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Centene by 76.6% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 14,654,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $522,885,000 after buying an additional 6,356,152 shares during the period. Deerfield Management Company L.P. increased its position in Centene by 184.0% in the third quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. now owns 9,046,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $322,761,000 after buying an additional 5,860,630 shares during the period. 8 Knots Management LLC acquired a new stake in Centene in the third quarter worth $186,662,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in Centene by 32.0% in the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 8,716,056 shares of the company’s stock worth $310,989,000 after buying an additional 2,111,674 shares during the period. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Centene Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:CNC opened at $59.64 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Centene Corporation has a 1-year low of $25.08 and a 1-year high of $62.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $42.99.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $47.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.90 EPS. Centene’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Centene Corporation will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on CNC. Barclays increased their target price on Centene from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Bank of America raised their price target on Centene from $60.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Argus raised Centene to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $61.00 price target (up from $55.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on Centene from $48.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $58.94.

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.