Barclays Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Centene (NYSE:CNC) Stock

Key Points

• Barclays raised its price target for Centene (NYSE:CNC) from $33.00 to $35.00, suggesting a potential upside of 2.49% from the current price.
• Several analysts have revised their ratings on Centene, with the consensus now at an average rating of "Hold" and a price target of $38.33.
• Despite recent fluctuations, Centene's stock has increased by 9.2%, marking a rebound in its performance.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by equities research analysts at Barclays from $33.00 to $35.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Barclays's target price would indicate a potential upside of 2.49% from the company's current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on CNC. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price objective on shares of Centene from $40.00 to $36.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Bank of America cut shares of Centene from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $52.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. TD Cowen restated a "hold" rating and set a $33.00 target price (down from $73.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $38.00 target price on shares of Centene in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Centene from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $38.33.

Centene Stock Up 9.2%

CNC opened at $34.15 on Friday. Centene has a fifty-two week low of $25.08 and a fifty-two week high of $77.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company has a market capitalization of $16.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.44. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $28.74 and a 200-day moving average of $48.08.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported ($0.16) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.39). The firm had revenue of $48.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.71 billion. Centene had a return on equity of 9.57% and a net margin of 1.15%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 22.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.42 EPS. Centene has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.750-1.750 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Centene will post 6.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Centene

In related news, Director Theodore R. Samuels II bought 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $27.62 per share, with a total value of $248,580.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 32,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,840. This trade represents a 39.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Sarah London bought 19,230 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $25.50 per share, with a total value of $490,365.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 845,275 shares in the company, valued at $21,554,512.50. The trade was a 2.33% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new position in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Centene in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Studio Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Centene during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Centene by 203.1% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 579 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 388 shares during the period. 93.63% of the stock is owned by 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.

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