Bank of New York Mellon Corp Sells 1,480,259 Shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lessened its holdings in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) by 32.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,065,090 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,480,259 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned approximately 0.62% of Centene worth $186,082,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter worth about $1,536,167,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Centene by 21.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,555,456 shares of the company's stock valued at $639,450,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884,358 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Centene by 42.8% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 7,742,698 shares of the company's stock worth $469,053,000 after acquiring an additional 2,319,952 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Centene by 32.3% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,469,062 shares of the company's stock valued at $391,854,000 after buying an additional 1,578,917 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Centene by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,294,816 shares of the company's stock worth $320,760,000 after acquiring an additional 443,121 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.63% of the company's stock.

Centene Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of CNC stock traded up $0.40 on Wednesday, reaching $33.00. 21,718,430 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,666,816. The company has a market capitalization of $16.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 0.44. Centene Corporation has a 12-month low of $31.81 and a 12-month high of $80.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The business's 50 day moving average price is $54.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.67.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. Centene had a return on equity of 14.56% and a net margin of 2.04%. The business had revenue of $46.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.16 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.26 earnings per share. Centene's quarterly revenue was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Centene in a research note on Monday, June 9th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays cut their price objective on Centene from $65.00 to $45.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $48.00 price objective (down previously from $75.00) on shares of Centene in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Centene in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Centene from $64.00 to $61.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Centene presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $68.87.

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.