Centene FY2026 EPS Estimate Decreased by Zacks Research

Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) - Analysts at Zacks Research decreased their FY2026 earnings estimates for shares of Centene in a research note issued on Tuesday, June 10th. Zacks Research analyst K. Dey now forecasts that the company will post earnings of $7.58 per share for the year, down from their previous forecast of $7.60. The consensus estimate for Centene's current full-year earnings is $6.86 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Centene's Q1 2027 earnings at $3.26 EPS.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on CNC. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Centene from $76.00 to $72.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Centene in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Centene from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Barclays restated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $65.00 target price (down previously from $84.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Centene from $64.00 to $61.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $77.71.

Centene Stock Performance

CNC stock traded down $0.19 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $55.20. The stock had a trading volume of 3,457,567 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,897,854. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market cap of $27.47 billion, a PE ratio of 8.85, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.45. Centene has a 52-week low of $54.01 and a 52-week high of $80.59.

Centene (NYSE:CNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $2.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.38. Centene had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 2.03%. The firm had revenue of $46.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.26 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centene

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,536,167,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Centene by 5.1% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,091,964 shares of the company's stock worth $673,393,000 after acquiring an additional 536,508 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Centene by 42.7% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,049,494 shares of the company's stock valued at $669,820,000 after purchasing an additional 3,306,796 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Centene by 32.3% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,469,062 shares of the company's stock worth $391,854,000 after purchasing an additional 1,578,917 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Centene by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,294,816 shares of the company's stock worth $320,760,000 after purchasing an additional 443,121 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Centene Company 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.