Cantor Fitzgerald Lowers Earnings Estimates for Centene

Key Points

• Cantor Fitzgerald has significantly reduced Centene's FY2025 EPS estimate from $4.27 to $1.71, while maintaining a "Neutral" rating with a target price of $38.00.
• Various analysts have also lowered target prices for Centene, with some dropping it as low as $28.00, indicating a shift to a more cautious outlook on the stock.
• Centene's recent earnings report showed a miss in EPS at -$0.16 compared to the consensus estimate of $0.23, despite revenue exceeding expectations at $48.74 billion.

Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) - Stock analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald cut their FY2025 EPS estimates for shares of Centene in a report released on Monday, July 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald analyst S. James now anticipates that the company will post earnings of $1.71 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $4.27. Cantor Fitzgerald currently has a "Neutral" rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Centene's current full-year earnings is $6.86 per share. Cantor Fitzgerald also issued estimates for Centene's FY2026 earnings at $3.70 EPS.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported ($0.16) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.39). The firm had revenue of $48.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.71 billion. Centene had a net margin of 1.15% and a return on equity of 9.57%. Centene's quarterly revenue was up 22.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.42 earnings per share.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of Centene from $51.00 to $43.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Centene from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $72.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Centene from $48.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Centene from $65.00 to $45.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Centene from $71.00 to $40.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $45.31.

Centene Price Performance

NYSE CNC traded down $0.15 on Wednesday, hitting $25.92. 17,527,511 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 21,992,306. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company has a market cap of $12.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.40. Centene has a 1-year low of $25.11 and a 1-year high of $80.59. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $44.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.85.

Insider Buying and Selling at Centene

In other news, Director Theodore R. Samuels II bought 9,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $27.62 per share, for a total transaction of $248,580.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 32,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $883,840. The trade was a 39.13% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 55.6% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 45,103 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,732,000 after purchasing an additional 16,108 shares during the period. Diametric Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Centene during the 4th quarter worth approximately $610,000. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in Centene by 85.6% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 216,928 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,142,000 after acquiring an additional 100,039 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Centene by 32.3% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 6,333 shares of the company's stock valued at $383,000 after purchasing an additional 1,546 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Centene by 30.0% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 708,717 shares of the company's stock worth $43,026,000 after purchasing an additional 163,462 shares during the period. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.