AQR Capital Management LLC Acquires 2,319,952 Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) by 42.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,742,698 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,319,952 shares during the period. Centene accounts for approximately 0.6% of AQR Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 17th largest position. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 1.53% of Centene worth $469,053,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Centene by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,294,816 shares of the company's stock valued at $320,760,000 after purchasing an additional 443,121 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of Centene by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 400,384 shares of the company's stock worth $24,255,000 after purchasing an additional 28,873 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Centene by 53.5% during the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,984,500 shares of the company's stock worth $180,801,000 after purchasing an additional 1,040,780 shares during the last quarter. Berger Financial Group Inc lifted its stake in shares of Centene by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Berger Financial Group Inc now owns 66,470 shares of the company's stock worth $4,027,000 after purchasing an additional 1,252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Centene by 17.2% in the 4th quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 41,855 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,536,000 after purchasing an additional 6,155 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Centene Stock Performance

CNC stock traded down $0.46 during trading on Thursday, hitting $59.39. 6,045,312 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,765,225. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Centene Co. has a 52 week low of $55.03 and a 52 week high of $80.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $60.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $60.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.53.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $2.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.38. The business had revenue of $46.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.16 billion. Centene had a net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Centene Co. will post 6.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CNC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Argus downgraded shares of Centene from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Centene from $64.00 to $61.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Centene from $76.00 to $72.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Centene from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Centene from $93.00 to $84.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $79.77.

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.