683 Capital Management LLC Invests $16.09 Million in Centene Corporation $CNC

Key Points

• 683 Capital Management LLC has acquired 265,000 shares of Centene Corporation, amounting to approximately $16.1 million, making Centene its 20th largest holding.
• Several institutional investors have increased their stakes in Centene recently, with the company having a 93.63% ownership by institutional players.
• Centene reported a quarterly revenue of $48.74 billion, exceeding expectations, but missed EPS estimates with a loss of ($0.16) per share.

683 Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 265,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,088,000. Centene accounts for approximately 1.1% of 683 Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. 683 Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Centene as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CNC. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Centene by 60.2% during the 4th quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,964 shares of the company's stock valued at $361,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Centene by 32.3% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,469,062 shares of the company's stock worth $391,854,000 after purchasing an additional 1,578,917 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Centene by 41.4% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 925,150 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,046,000 after acquiring an additional 270,899 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in Centene by 4,613.1% in the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 348,017 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,083,000 after buying an additional 340,633 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caxton Associates LP acquired a new stake in shares of Centene during the 4th quarter worth $66,708,000. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CNC traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $28.97. The stock had a trading volume of 14,106,172 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,184,450. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company has a 50 day moving average of $29.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $48.83. Centene Corporation has a twelve month low of $25.08 and a twelve month high of $77.29. The firm has a market cap of $14.23 billion, a PE ratio of 7.17, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.44.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported ($0.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.39). Centene had a net margin of 1.15% and a return on equity of 9.57%. The firm had revenue of $48.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.42 earnings per share. Centene's revenue was up 22.4% on a year-over-year basis. Centene has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.750-1.750 EPS. Research analysts predict that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Centene

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on CNC. Bank of America lowered Centene from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $52.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Centene from $68.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 25th. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Centene from $51.00 to $43.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 28th. TD Cowen restated a "hold" rating and set a $33.00 target price (down previously from $73.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Barclays set a $33.00 target price on Centene and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $37.93.

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.