Centene (NYSE:CNC) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Monday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $89.00 to $93.00. The stock had previously closed at $70.73, but opened at $75.73. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Centene shares last traded at $73.28, with a volume of 1,120,956 shares.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on CNC. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. StockNews.com lowered Centene from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $85.00 price objective (down from $92.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. UBS Group boosted their target price on Centene from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, December 21st. Finally, Barclays began coverage on Centene in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $101.00 price target for the company. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $85.38.

Insider Activity at Centene

In other news, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.41, for a total transaction of $774,100.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,455 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $886,731.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.41, for a total value of $774,100.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $886,731.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 12,000 shares of Centene stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total transaction of $900,840.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 235,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,668,850.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centene

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Centene by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,020 shares of the company's stock worth $892,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the period. Sandy Spring Bank grew its stake in shares of Centene by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Sandy Spring Bank now owns 1,629 shares of the company's stock valued at $121,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 10,456 shares of the company's stock valued at $720,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the period. First Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Centene by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 4,154 shares of the company's stock worth $308,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Centene by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,454 shares of the company's stock valued at $169,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company's stock.

Centene Price Performance

The business's 50 day moving average price is $76.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $38.90 billion, a PE ratio of 14.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.38.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $39.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.16 billion. Centene had a net margin of 1.75% and a return on equity of 14.26%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.86 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Centene Co. will post 6.75 earnings per share for the current year.

About Centene

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.