HealthInvest Partners AB Invests $4.60 Million in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

HealthInvest Partners AB acquired a new position in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 62,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,601,000. Centene comprises 3.6% of HealthInvest Partners AB's investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sandy Spring Bank increased its holdings in Centene by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Sandy Spring Bank now owns 1,629 shares of the company's stock worth $121,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in Centene by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 10,456 shares of the company's stock worth $720,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. First Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Centene by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 4,154 shares of the company's stock worth $308,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Centene by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,454 shares of the company's stock worth $169,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Centene by 24.1% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 856 shares of the company's stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Centene Stock Performance

Centene stock traded down $0.46 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $72.26. 3,240,400 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,056,784. Centene Co. has a twelve month low of $60.83 and a twelve month high of $81.42. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $76.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market cap of $38.65 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.02. Centene had a return on equity of 14.26% and a net margin of 1.75%. The company had revenue of $39.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $36.16 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Centene Co. will post 6.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Centene

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Truist Financial upped their price target on Centene from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, December 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Centene from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $85.00 price objective (down from $92.00) on shares of Centene in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Centene from $72.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Centene currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $85.38.

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.

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