Nykredit A S Takes $8.62 Million Position in Centene Corporation $CNC

Key Points

• Nykredit A/S acquired 134,334 Centene shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $8.62 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 93.63% of the company.
• Centene reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.51 versus the $1.09 consensus estimate and revenue of $53.58 billion, up 9.9% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Centene has a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $70.05, while shares recently opened at $66.92.

Nykredit A S bought a new position in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 134,334 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,623,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Centene in the second quarter worth approximately $1,384,000. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group boosted its position in shares of Centene by 15.5% during the second quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 7,118 shares of the company's stock valued at $457,000 after buying an additional 953 shares during the last quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. grew its holdings in Centene by 110.5% during the second quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,381,879 shares of the company's stock worth $88,703,000 after buying an additional 725,300 shares in the last quarter. Montanova Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Centene in the 2nd quarter valued at $6,361,000. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. bought a new position in Centene during the 2nd quarter valued at $515,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Centene news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 56,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 248,854 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,648,332.60. This represents a 18.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CNC. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Centene from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Centene from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Centene from $46.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $66.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $79.00 target price (up from $68.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Monday, August 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $70.05.

Centene Price Performance

CNC opened at $66.92 on Friday. Centene Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $28.24 and a fifty-two week high of $69.36. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $65.56 and a 200 day moving average of $54.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market cap of $33.06 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.41, a PEG ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.10.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $1.42. Centene had a negative net margin of 2.51% and a positive return on equity of 12.12%. The business had revenue of $53.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $47.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.16) earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Centene Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

Centene Profile

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.

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