99,100 Shares in Centene Corporation $CNC Purchased by Montanova Capital LLC

Montanova Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 99,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,361,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Centene in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Centene by 118.4% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the period. MidFirst Bank purchased a new stake in Centene during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Bayban purchased a new position in Centene in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 56,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.90, for a total value of $3,779,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 248,854 shares in the company, valued at $16,648,332.60. This trade represents a 18.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on CNC shares. Raymond James Financial set a $75.00 price objective on Centene in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $79.00 target price on Centene in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $80.00 price target (up from $75.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $79.00 price target (up from $68.00) on shares of Centene in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Argus raised Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Centene presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $70.05.

Centene Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of Centene stock opened at $64.32 on Tuesday. Centene Corporation has a one year low of $28.24 and a one year high of $69.36. The company has a market cap of $31.77 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.16, 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. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $65.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $53.53.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $47.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.16) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Centene Corporation will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

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.