CCM Investment Group LLC Acquires New Shares in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC)

Key Points

• CCM Investment Group LLC has acquired a new stake in Centene Corporation, purchasing 46,143 shares valued at approximately $2.77 million.
• Centene's stock received various rating downgrades from analysts, with JPMorgan Chase & Co. cutting the target price from $48.00 to $30.00, reflecting a generally bearish sentiment.
• Centene reported a net loss of $0.16 per share for its latest quarter, which was significantly below the consensus estimate of $0.23, despite a revenue increase of 22.4% year-over-year.

CCM Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 46,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,770,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Centene in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new stake in Centene in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Studio Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Centene in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Centene by 203.1% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 579 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 388 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its stake in Centene by 273.8% in the first quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 927 shares of the company's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Centene Stock Up 3.4%

CNC traded up $0.87 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $26.12. The stock had a trading volume of 16,242,302 shares, compared to its average volume of 21,727,420. The stock's 50 day moving average is $39.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.70. 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 company has a market capitalization of $12.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.40. Centene Corporation has a one year low of $25.08 and a one year high of $80.59.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter was up 22.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Centene

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Centene from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $65.00 to $38.00 in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Centene from $33.00 to $28.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Bank of America lowered Centene from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $52.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered Centene from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $72.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Centene from $65.00 to $45.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $42.20.

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.