JPMorgan Chase & Co. Reaffirms Overweight Rating for Centene (NYSE:CNC)

Centene (NYSE:CNC)‘s stock had its “overweight” rating reissued by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have a $75.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $80.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 26.07% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on CNC. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. UBS Group upgraded Centene from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Stephens cut their price target on Centene from $75.00 to $73.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Centene from $83.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of Centene from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $80.92.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of Centene stock opened at $59.49 on Tuesday. Centene has a 12 month low of $55.03 and a 12 month high of $81.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.46. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $61.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Insider Transactions at Centene

In other Centene news, Director H James Dallas bought 1,693 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $59.01 per share, for a total transaction of $99,903.93. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $99,903.93. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Sarah London purchased 4,117 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $60.80 per share, with a total value of $250,313.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 667,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,567,523.20. The trade was a 0.62 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 28,010 shares of company stock valued at $1,644,526. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Park Place Capital Corp lifted its stake in Centene by 1,190.0% during the third quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 387 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC boosted its stake in Centene by 41.4% in the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 468 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Chris Bulman Inc purchased a new position in shares of Centene during the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Centene by 174.3% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 683 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 434 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of Centene by 75.3% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Centene Company 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.