Strs Ohio Has $8.37 Million Stock Holdings in Centene Corporation $CNC
by Doug Wharley · The Cerbat GemStrs Ohio boosted its stake in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC – Free Report) by 1,635.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 203,339 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 191,620 shares during the quarter. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Centene were worth $8,367,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its position in Centene by 66.0% in the 3rd quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 85,232 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,041,000 after purchasing an additional 33,875 shares during the period. Oracle Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Centene in the 3rd quarter worth about $3,936,000. Packer & Co Ltd bought a new position in Centene in the 3rd quarter worth about $50,487,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its stake in Centene by 122.5% in the 3rd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 223,157 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,962,000 after acquiring an additional 122,870 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ARGA Investment Management LP bought a new position in Centene in the 3rd quarter worth about $21,485,000. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of equities analysts have commented on CNC shares. Bank of America upgraded shares of Centene from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $34.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Centene from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Centene from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $41.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Raymond James Financial set a $60.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Centene from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.65.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Centene
Centene Price Performance
Shares of CNC opened at $53.59 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $26.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.06. Centene Corporation has a twelve month low of $25.08 and a twelve month high of $64.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company has a 50 day moving average of $38.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.49.
Centene (NYSE:CNC – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $1.14. The company had revenue of $49.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $47.53 billion. Centene had a negative net margin of 3.25% and a positive return on equity of 5.57%. Centene’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.90 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Centene Corporation will post 3.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.