Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC Makes New Investment in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC acquired a new position in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 5,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $396,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Centene during the first quarter valued at $60,000. Gleason Group Inc. bought a new stake in Centene in the first quarter worth about $78,000. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 22.9% in the 1st quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 18,406 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,445,000 after purchasing an additional 3,434 shares during the period. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,385,000. Finally, FCF Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,668,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on CNC shares. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Centene in a report on Friday, June 21st. Robert W. Baird started coverage on Centene in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $83.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Centene from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Centene from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Baird R W raised Centene to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $84.93.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CNC traded up $0.07 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $67.72. The stock had a trading volume of 2,818,077 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,292,540. The business’s fifty day moving average is $72.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The company has a market cap of $36.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.46, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.47. Centene Co. has a twelve month low of $60.83 and a twelve month high of $81.42.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.17. Centene had a return on equity of 14.19% and a net margin of 1.76%. The firm had revenue of $40.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.43 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.11 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Centene Co. will post 6.82 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.62, for a total value of $620,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 300,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,313,710.34. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Christopher J. Coughlin sold 878 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.75, for a total value of $67,386.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 25,504 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,957,432. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.62, for a total transaction of $620,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 300,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,313,710.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Centene Profile

Centene Corporation operates as a healthcare enterprise that provides programs and services to under-insured and uninsured families, commercial organizations, and military families in the United States. The company operates through Medicaid, Medicare, Commercial, and Other segments. The Medicaid segment offers health plan coverage, including medicaid expansion, aged, blind, disabled, children's health insurance program, foster care, medicare-medicaid plans, long-term services and support.