Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Increases Stake in Centene Corporation $CNC

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its stake in Centene Corporation by 37.0%, owning 646,228 shares valued at $39.2 million, following the purchase of an additional 174,516 shares in the first quarter.
• Despite a revenue increase of 22.4% year-over-year, Centene recently reported an earnings per share (EPS) loss of ($0.16), falling short of analysts' expectations.
• Insider purchases include Director Theodore R. Samuels II acquiring 9,000 shares and CEO Sarah London buying 19,230 shares, signaling confidence in the company's potential despite recent setbacks.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its position in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) by 37.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 646,228 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 174,516 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned about 0.13% of Centene worth $39,233,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CNC. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its holdings 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 worth $127,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Centene by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,617 shares of the company's stock valued at $341,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Poinciana Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in Centene by 2.8% during the first quarter. Poinciana Advisors Group LLC now owns 7,221 shares of the company's stock worth $438,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel increased its holdings in Centene by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 3,811 shares of the company's stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in Centene by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,387 shares of the company's stock worth $270,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Centene from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $38.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Centene from $33.00 to $28.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Centene from $48.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Centene from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $72.00 to $30.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Centene currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $37.93.

Insider Buying and Selling at Centene

In related news, CEO Sarah London acquired 19,230 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $25.50 per share, with a total value of $490,365.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 845,275 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,554,512.50. This represents a 2.33% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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 cost of $27.62 per share, for a total transaction of $248,580.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 32,000 shares in the company, valued at $883,840. This trade represents a 39.13% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company's stock.

Centene Stock Down 0.6%

CNC traded down $0.17 during trading on Monday, reaching $28.82. The stock had a trading volume of 15,981,845 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,908,759. The stock's 50 day moving average is $29.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $48.70. 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 $14.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.44. Centene Corporation has a one year low of $25.08 and a one year high of $77.29.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported ($0.16) earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $48.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.42 earnings per share. Centene's revenue was up 22.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Centene has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.750-1.750 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

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.