Lecap Asset Management Ltd. Makes New $2.12 Million Investment in Centene Corporation $CNC

Key Points

• Lecap Asset Management Ltd. bought 51,460 shares of Centene in Q4 valued at approximately $2.12 million, making up about 0.8% of its portfolio and the stock its 15th-largest holding.
• Institutional ownership is very high at 93.63%, and several funds increased positions in Q4 — notably Ninety One UK added about 1.07 million shares, while Asset Management One and Merit Financial also materially raised their stakes.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of Hold with an average price target of $41.88; CNC trades near $38.11 (market cap ~$18.7B) and reported Q4 revenue of $49.73B (up 21.9%) with an adjusted EPS of ($1.19) that beat estimates.

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 51,460 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,118,000. Centene makes up approximately 0.8% of Lecap Asset Management Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Symmetry Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Centene in the 4th quarter worth approximately $292,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Centene by 17.4% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 260,310 shares of the company's stock worth $10,624,000 after purchasing an additional 38,553 shares in the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd lifted its stake in Centene by 162.6% in the 4th quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 1,720,422 shares of the company's stock worth $70,795,000 after purchasing an additional 1,065,223 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 140.9% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 156,332 shares of the company's stock worth $6,433,000 after buying an additional 91,429 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 14.2% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 93,054 shares of the company's stock worth $3,829,000 after buying an additional 11,589 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on CNC shares. Mizuho set a $41.00 price target on shares of Centene and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $41.00 price target on shares of Centene in a report on Monday, February 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Centene from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, February 15th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Centene from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Centene from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Centene has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $41.88.

Centene Price Performance

CNC stock opened at $38.11 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. Centene Corporation has a 52 week low of $25.08 and a 52 week high of $64.15. The firm's fifty day moving average is $38.23 and its 200 day moving average is $39.02. The firm has a market cap of $18.74 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.59.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The company reported ($1.19) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.22) by $0.03. Centene had a negative net margin of 3.43% and a positive return on equity of 4.25%. The company had revenue of $49.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.41 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 21.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Centene has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.000-3.000 EPS. Research analysts predict that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

About Centene

Centene Corporation NYSE: CNC is a diversified, multi-national healthcare enterprise that specializes in providing services to government-sponsored and national health programs. The company primarily acts as a managed care organization, delivering healthcare coverage and administering benefits for Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Medicare Advantage, and individual marketplace plans. Centene also contracts with federal and state agencies to manage specialty care programs and community-based services for vulnerable populations.

Centene's offerings extend beyond traditional insurance to include a range of specialty and support services.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CNC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.