Centene Corporation $CNC Stock Bought by Kintegral Advisory LLC

Key Points

• Kintegral Advisory LLC increased its Centene stake by 277.3% in the third quarter, bringing its holdings to 41,182 shares valued at approximately $2.56 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 93.63% of Centene.
• Centene reported quarterly EPS of $2.51, beating estimates of $1.09, while revenue rose 9.9% year over year to $53.58 billion. Analysts expect full-year EPS of $4.89.
• Centene shares recently traded at $69.27, near their 52-week high of $71.21. Wall Street’s average rating is “Hold”, with an average price target of $70.05, despite nine Buy ratings.

Kintegral Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) by 277.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 41,182 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 30,268 shares during the period. Kintegral Advisory LLC's holdings in Centene were worth $2,558,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CNC. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Centene in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,660,422,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Centene by 423.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,301,215 shares of the company's stock valued at $853,805,000 after acquiring an additional 10,757,914 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Centene by 12.4% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,517,580 shares of the company's stock valued at $354,173,000 after acquiring an additional 608,249 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Centene by 21.6% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,518,785 shares of the company's stock worth $302,818,000 after acquiring an additional 802,756 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Centene during the 2nd quarter worth $285,713,000. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Centene

In related news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 56,500 shares of Centene stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.90, for a total transaction of $3,779,850.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 248,854 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,648,332.60. The trade was a 18.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Centene Price Performance

CNC traded down $1.24 during trading on Friday, reaching $69.27. The stock had a trading volume of 3,336,077 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,808,065. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $65.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.13. Centene Corporation has a 1-year low of $31.63 and a 1-year high of $71.21.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $1.42. The company had revenue of $53.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $47.64 billion. Centene had a positive return on equity of 12.12% and a negative net margin of 2.51%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.16) EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Centene Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Centene from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Argus upgraded shares of Centene from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. UBS Group set a $79.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Centene from $46.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $75.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $70.05.

Centene Profile

Centene Corporation NYSE: CNC is a healthcare enterprise that provides health insurance and related services, primarily through government-sponsored programs. Its offerings include Medicaid plans, Medicare products, health plans sold through the Affordable Care Act marketplace, and services for military families through government-sponsored healthcare programs.

The company also provides pharmacy, behavioral health, specialty healthcare, care management and administrative services through various subsidiaries and partner organizations.

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