Private Management Group Inc. Sells 403,505 Shares of Centene Corporation $CNC

Private Management Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 97.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,669 shares of the company’s stock after selling 403,505 shares during the period. Private Management Group Inc.’s holdings in Centene were worth $601,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Silicon Valley Capital Partners acquired a new stake in Centene in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. North Point Portfolio Managers Corp OH purchased a new stake in Centene during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Toth Financial Advisory Corp acquired a new position in shares of Centene during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. MidFirst Bank acquired a new position in shares of Centene during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Fiduciary Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 56,500 shares of Centene stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.90, for a total transaction of $3,779,850.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 248,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,648,332.60. This trade represents a 18.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Centene Stock Up 2.4%

CNC stock opened at $70.17 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $66.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $56.12. Centene Corporation has a 12 month low of $31.63 and a 12 month high of $78.08. The company has a market cap of $34.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.03, a PEG ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 1.07.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $50.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.12 billion. Centene had a return on equity of 12.15% and a net margin of 0.72%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Centene Corporation will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on CNC shares. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Centene from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Raymond James Financial set a $79.00 price objective on Centene in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on Centene from $75.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 31st. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $65.00 target price (up from $47.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Centene currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.80.

Centene Company Profile

Centene Corporation is a U.S. health care company that provides managed care and related services, primarily for people enrolled in government-sponsored health programs. Its offerings include Medicaid and Medicare plans, as well as health insurance sold through the Affordable Care Act marketplace. Centene serves members through health plans and a network of health care providers. Its businesses include Ambetter, which offers marketplace health plans, and Wellcare, which provides Medicare-related coverage.