Centene (NYSE:CNC) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Mizuho Analyst Says

Key Points

• Mizuho raised the price objective for Centene's (NYSE:CNC) stock from $28 to $40, suggesting a potential upside of 3.19% from its previous close, while maintaining a "neutral" rating.
• Several research firms have varying target prices for Centene, with Wells Fargo at $41 and JPMorgan adjusting theirs down to $30, indicating a divided sentiment on the stock's outlook.
• Insider trading revealed that CEO Sarah London bought 19,230 shares at $25.50 each, reflecting confidence in the company's future performance among executives.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by equities research analysts at Mizuho from $28.00 to $40.00 in a report released on Thursday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the stock. Mizuho's target price indicates a potential upside of 3.19% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on CNC. Wells Fargo & Company set a $41.00 target price on Centene and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Centene from $33.00 to $28.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Centene in a research note on Wednesday. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $38.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Centene from $48.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $39.07.

Centene Stock Up 0.8%

NYSE CNC opened at $38.77 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Centene has a 12 month low of $25.08 and a 12 month high of $73.50. The stock's 50 day moving average is $30.70 and its 200 day moving average is $44.92. The stock has a market cap of $19.04 billion, a PE ratio of 9.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.48.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last issued 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 company had revenue of $48.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.71 billion. Centene had a return on equity of 9.57% and a net margin of 1.15%.Centene's revenue was up 22.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. Centene has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.750-1.750 EPS. Research analysts predict that Centene will post 6.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Centene

In other Centene news, CEO Sarah London bought 19,230 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $25.50 per share, with a total value of $490,365.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 845,275 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,554,512.50. This trade represents a 2.33% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Theodore R. Samuels II acquired 9,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $27.62 per share, for a total transaction of $248,580.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 32,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $883,840. This represents a 39.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Centene

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CNC. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Centene during the second quarter worth $1,435,997,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Centene by 42.7% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,049,494 shares of the company's stock valued at $669,820,000 after buying an additional 3,306,796 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Centene during the first quarter worth about $146,557,000. Boston Partners raised its position in shares of Centene by 155.3% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,901,603 shares of the company's stock valued at $236,802,000 after purchasing an additional 2,373,280 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Centene during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $65,105,000. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Centene

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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