Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC – Get Rating) by 72.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,119 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,024 shares during the period. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $256,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CNC. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its position in Centene by 5,700.0% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 348 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. James Investment Research Inc. bought a new stake in Centene during the 3rd quarter valued at $51,000. Private Trust Co. NA bought a new stake in Centene during the 2nd quarter valued at $70,000. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Centene during the 3rd quarter valued at $71,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its position in Centene by 24.1% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 856 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. 93.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
CNC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Cowen decreased their target price on Centene from $101.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 14th. Barclays reduced their price target on Centene from $93.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Centene from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $94.00 to $79.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 8th. TheStreet lowered Centene from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Centene from $79.00 to $71.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.22.
Centene Stock Up 3.2 %
Centene (NYSE:CNC – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 7th. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $35.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.37 billion. Centene had a net margin of 0.83% and a return on equity of 12.98%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.01 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Centene Co. will post 6.34 earnings per share for the current year.
Centene declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Friday, December 16th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.
Insider Activity
In other news, CEO Sarah London acquired 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $62.60 per share, with a total value of $1,878,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 313,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,653,457.80. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Sarah London bought 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $62.60 per share, with a total value of $1,878,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 313,953 shares in the company, valued at $19,653,457.80. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Theodore R. Samuels II bought 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $71.88 per share, for a total transaction of $503,160.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 11,912 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $856,234.56. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have bought 46,750 shares of company stock valued at $3,091,605. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.
Centene Profile
Centene Corp. operates as a healthcare enterprise, which engages in the provision of programs and services to government sponsored healthcare programs. It operates through the following segments: Medicaid, Medicare, Commercial, and Other. The company was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in St. Louis, MO.
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