GF Fund Management CO. LTD. Takes Position in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 13,266 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $804,000.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Centene in the fourth quarter worth $1,536,167,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Centene by 42.8% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 7,742,698 shares of the company's stock valued at $469,053,000 after purchasing an additional 2,319,952 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in Centene by 1,788.1% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,245,511 shares of the company's stock valued at $136,033,000 after purchasing an additional 2,126,582 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 21.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,555,456 shares of the company's stock worth $639,450,000 after acquiring an additional 1,884,358 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 91.6% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,770,426 shares of the company's stock worth $228,414,000 after acquiring an additional 1,802,265 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company's stock.

Centene Stock Down 3.0%

Shares of NYSE:CNC traded down $1.72 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $55.93. 4,624,151 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,894,277. The stock has a market cap of $27.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.96, a P/E/G 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $55.03 and a 12-month high of $80.59. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $60.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $60.27.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CNC shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Centene from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Centene from $64.00 to $61.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Centene in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Barclays reduced their price target on Centene from $93.00 to $84.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Centene from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $79.77.

Centene 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.