Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• Centene has a consensus analyst rating of Hold from 20 brokerages (3 sell, 14 hold, 3 buy) with an average 12‑month price target of $42.00.
• Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company, with major position increases reported by Vanguard, AQR, Geode, Deerfield and Morgan Stanley in recent quarters.
• Centene beat revenue estimates last quarter (revenue +21.9% YoY) while reporting ($1.19) EPS, has set FY 2026 guidance at 3.00 EPS (analysts ~3.01), and its stock trades around $43.57 with a 12‑month range of $25.08–$64.15.

Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the twenty brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, fourteen have given a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $42.00.

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $39.00 price target (up from $37.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Centene from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $59.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Centene from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 19th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Centene

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Centene by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 56,978,753 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,344,676,000 after purchasing an additional 190,334 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Centene by 117.0% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 31,798,738 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,308,518,000 after purchasing an additional 17,143,904 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Centene by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,271,492 shares of the company's stock valued at $554,338,000 after purchasing an additional 697,277 shares during the last quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. raised its position in Centene by 184.0% in the 3rd quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. now owns 9,046,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $322,761,000 after purchasing an additional 5,860,630 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised its position in Centene by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 9,002,570 shares of the company's stock valued at $370,456,000 after purchasing an additional 603,585 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company's stock.

Centene Price Performance

Shares of CNC stock opened at $43.57 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $38.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Centene has a 12 month low of $25.08 and a 12 month high of $64.15. The company has a market capitalization of $21.43 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.59.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 6th. The company reported ($1.19) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.22) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $49.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.41 billion. Centene had a positive return on equity of 4.25% and a negative net margin of 3.43%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 21.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.80 EPS. Centene has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.000-3.000 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Centene will post 3.01 EPS for the current year.

About Centene

Centene Corporation NYSE: CNC is a diversified, multi-national healthcare enterprise that specializes in providing services to government-sponsored and national health programs. The company primarily acts as a managed care organization, delivering healthcare coverage and administering benefits for Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Medicare Advantage, and individual marketplace plans. Centene also contracts with federal and state agencies to manage specialty care programs and community-based services for vulnerable populations.

Centene's offerings extend beyond traditional insurance to include a range of specialty and support services.

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