Centene (NYSE:CNC) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Centene (CNC) from a "hold" to a "strong-buy" rating in its latest note.
• Several firms have raised price targets and upgraded coverage (e.g., Morgan Stanley, Jefferies, Sanford Bernstein, Wells Fargo, Wall Street Zen), but the MarketBeat consensus remains a "Hold" with an average target of $53.82.
• Centene beat the quarter's expectations with EPS of $3.37 (vs. $2.23 est.) and revenue of $49.94 billion (vs. $47.53 billion), up 7.1% year-over-year, though it still reported a negative net margin and a negative P/E.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

CNC has been the subject of several other reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Centene from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Centene from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Centene from $48.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Centene from $44.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Centene from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Centene has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $53.82.

Centene Price Performance

CNC stock opened at $54.86 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $39.59 and a 200-day moving average of $39.89. Centene has a 12-month low of $25.08 and a 12-month high of $64.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company has a market cap of $27.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.18, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.06.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.23 by $1.14. Centene had a negative net margin of 3.25% and a positive return on equity of 5.57%. The company had revenue of $49.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $47.53 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.90 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Centene will post 3.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Centene

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd grew its stake in shares of Centene by 66.0% during the 3rd quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 85,232 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,041,000 after buying an additional 33,875 shares during the period. Oracle Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Centene during the 3rd quarter valued at $3,936,000. Packer & Co Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Centene during the 3rd quarter valued at $50,487,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. boosted its position in Centene by 122.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 223,157 shares of the company's stock worth $7,962,000 after purchasing an additional 122,870 shares during the period. Finally, ARGA Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in Centene during the 3rd quarter worth $21,485,000. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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