Centene Corporation $CNC Shares Purchased by Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC

Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 62.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 144,965 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 55,768 shares during the period. Centene makes up about 0.7% of Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $4,746,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CNC. DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in Centene during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new stake in Centene in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Centene by 118.4% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares in the last quarter. Bayban purchased a new stake in shares of Centene during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Centene during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on CNC. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Centene from $44.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $53.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Mizuho set a $63.00 price target on shares of Centene and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Centene from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Centene in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $60.78.

Centene Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CNC opened at $67.80 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $59.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.95. Centene Corporation has a 52 week low of $25.08 and a 52 week high of $69.29. The stock has a market cap of $33.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.16, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.07.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by $1.14. Centene had a negative net margin of 3.25% and a positive return on equity of 5.57%. The company had revenue of $49.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.90 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Centene Corporation will post 3.44 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.