217,838 Centene Corporation $CNC Shares Bought by Candriam S.C.A.

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. increased its Centene stake by 133.9% in the third quarter, buying 217,838 shares and bringing its total holdings to 380,513 shares, valued at about $23.7 million.
• Centene reported quarterly EPS of $0.58, beating the $0.10 consensus estimate, while revenue of $50.65 billion also exceeded forecasts and rose 1.9% year over year.
• Analyst opinion is mixed: nine rate the stock a Buy, 11 a Hold, and one a Sell; MarketBeat reports an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $73.80.

Candriam S.C.A. boosted its stake in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) by 133.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 380,513 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 217,838 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A. owned approximately 0.08% of Centene worth $23,724,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Silicon Valley Capital Partners bought a new position in shares of Centene during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. North Point Portfolio Managers Corp OH bought a new stake in shares of Centene in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Toth Financial Advisory Corp bought a new stake in shares of Centene in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. MidFirst Bank purchased a new position in Centene in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Fiduciary Financial Advisors purchased a new position in Centene in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.63% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating and set a $82.00 price objective (up from $80.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Raymond James Financial set a $79.00 target price on Centene in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $65.00 price target (up from $47.00) on shares of Centene in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Centene from $69.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $79.00 price objective on Centene in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Centene currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $73.80.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of CNC stock opened at $69.69 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.87, a PEG ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm's 50 day moving average is $66.64 and its 200 day moving average is $55.88. Centene Corporation has a 12 month low of $31.63 and a 12 month high of $78.08.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.48. Centene had a net margin of 0.72% and a return on equity of 12.15%. The business had revenue of $50.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $47.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.50 EPS. Centene's revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Centene Corporation will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Centene

In other news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 56,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.90, for a total value of $3,779,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 248,854 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,648,332.60. This trade represents a 18.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Centene Company Profile

Centene Corporation is a U.S. health care company that provides managed care and related services, primarily for people enrolled in government-sponsored health programs. Its offerings include Medicaid and Medicare plans, as well as health insurance sold through the Affordable Care Act marketplace.

Centene serves members through health plans and a network of health care providers. Its businesses include Ambetter, which offers marketplace health plans, and Wellcare, which provides Medicare-related coverage.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CNC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.