Nuveen Asset Management LLC Cuts Position in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) by 22.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,386,914 shares of the company's stock after selling 411,091 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.27% of Centene worth $84,019,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in CNC. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp increased its stake in Centene by 21.2% in the fourth quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 22,519 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,364,000 after acquiring an additional 3,946 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Centene by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 125,373 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,595,000 after acquiring an additional 18,654 shares during the last quarter. LMR Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Centene during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,529,000. LRI Investments LLC lifted its stake in Centene by 2,317.3% in the 4th quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 1,813 shares of the company's stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 1,738 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integral Health Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter worth $30,290,000. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company's stock.

Centene Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of CNC traded down $1.21 on Wednesday, reaching $60.75. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,227,541 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,866,417. Centene Co. has a twelve month low of $55.03 and a twelve month high of $80.59. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $60.80 and a 200-day moving average of $60.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.23 billion, a PE ratio of 9.74, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $2.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.38. The business had revenue of $46.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $43.16 billion. Centene had a net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.26 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Centene Co. will post 6.86 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CNC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Centene from $76.00 to $72.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Centene from $93.00 to $84.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Centene from $64.00 to $61.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Centene from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Centene in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $79.77.

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.