Centene Corporation $CNC Shares Acquired by Aberdeen Group plc

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc significantly increased its ownership in Centene Corporation by 106.7% during the first quarter, now holding approximately 0.07% of the company, valued at about $20.59 million.
• Several major financial institutions have adjusted their ratings and price targets for Centene, with notable downgrades from Wells Fargo and Bank of America, indicating a negative sentiment towards the stock.
• Despite recent challenges, including a disappointing earnings report, Centene reported a year-over-year revenue increase of 22.4%, totaling $48.74 billion for the quarter.

Aberdeen Group plc lifted its holdings in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) by 106.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 341,462 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 176,295 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc owned 0.07% of Centene worth $20,587,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in shares of Centene by 8.8% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 2,092 shares of the company's stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Poinciana Advisors Group LLC grew its holdings in Centene by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Poinciana Advisors Group LLC now owns 7,221 shares of the company's stock valued at $438,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel increased its stake in Centene by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 3,811 shares of the company's stock worth $234,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in Centene by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,387 shares of the company's stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank grew its stake in shares of Centene by 0.3% during the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 97,346 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,910,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company's stock.

Centene Stock Performance

NYSE CNC traded up $0.5320 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $29.3420. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,647,518 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,720,159. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.03. Centene Corporation has a 52 week low of $25.08 and a 52 week high of $80.59. The stock has a market cap of $14.41 billion, a PE ratio of 7.26, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.40.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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). The firm had revenue of $48.74 billion for 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%. The business's revenue was up 22.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.42 EPS. Centene has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.750-1.750 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on CNC shares. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Centene from $64.00 to $61.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Centene from $51.00 to $43.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Centene from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $65.00 to $38.00 in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Centene from $71.00 to $40.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Centene from $65.00 to $45.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $42.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Centene news, Director Theodore R. Samuels II acquired 9,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $27.62 per share, with a total value of $248,580.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 32,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $883,840. This represents a 39.13% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 cost of $25.50 per share, for a total transaction of $490,365.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 845,275 shares in the company, valued at $21,554,512.50. This represents a 2.33% 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.

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.