AMF Tjanstepension AB Acquires New Holdings in Centene Corporation $CNC

Key Points

• AMF Tjanstepension AB has acquired 368,342 shares of Centene Corporation for approximately $19.99 million, representing a 0.07% ownership stake in the company.
• Centene's stock has risen by 5.1%, with shares trading at $38.71, though the company reported a loss of $0.16 EPS for the last quarter, missing analysts' expectations.
• Institutional investors own 93.63% of Centene, with significant stake increases from firms like AQR Capital Management and Boston Partners during the past quarter.

AMF Tjanstepension AB bought a new position in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 368,342 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,994,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB owned approximately 0.07% of Centene at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Centene by 42.7% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,049,494 shares of the company's stock worth $669,820,000 after acquiring an additional 3,306,796 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Centene during the first quarter worth about $146,557,000. Boston Partners increased its position in shares of Centene by 155.3% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,901,603 shares of the company's stock worth $236,802,000 after purchasing an additional 2,373,280 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Centene by 111.5% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,608,213 shares of the company's stock valued at $219,055,000 after purchasing an additional 1,902,277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 8 Knots Management LLC grew its stake in Centene by 52.5% in the 1st quarter. 8 Knots Management LLC now owns 3,050,904 shares of the company's stock worth $185,220,000 after buying an additional 1,050,648 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company's stock.

Centene Stock Up 5.1%

Shares of Centene stock opened at $38.71 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $29.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.35. Centene Corporation has a 52-week low of $25.08 and a 52-week high of $73.50. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $19.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.48.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.39). The firm had revenue of $48.74 billion during 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.42 EPS. Centene has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.750-1.750 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on CNC shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Centene from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $72.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Centene from $68.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Wall Street Zen lowered Centene from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on Centene from $51.00 to $43.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Centene from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Centene currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $38.33.

Insider Activity at Centene

In other Centene news, CEO Sarah London acquired 19,230 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $25.50 per share, for a total transaction of $490,365.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer 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 acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Theodore R. Samuels II bought 9,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $27.62 per share, with a total value of $248,580.00. Following the acquisition, 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. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

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.

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