Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) Holdings Raised by Marks Group Wealth Management Inc

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 83,192 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,242 shares during the period. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in Centene were worth $6,174,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harris Associates L P acquired a new position in Centene in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $274,274,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Centene by 535.9% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,837,980 shares of the company’s stock valued at $136,396,000 after buying an additional 1,548,961 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Centene by 8.7% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,788,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $605,351,000 after buying an additional 704,684 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its position in Centene by 42.9% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 2,161,362 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,395,000 after acquiring an additional 648,620 shares during the period. Finally, Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C grew its stake in Centene by 47.5% during the 3rd quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C now owns 1,990,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $137,071,000 after acquiring an additional 641,000 shares in the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price target (down from $92.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Barclays began coverage on shares of Centene in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $101.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Centene from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. StockNews.com lowered Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Centene presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.38.

Centene Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of Centene stock opened at $75.84 on Wednesday. Centene Co. has a 1 year low of $60.83 and a 1 year high of $81.42. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $76.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.74. The company has a market cap of $40.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.45, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $39.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.16 billion. Centene had a net margin of 1.75% and a return on equity of 14.26%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Centene Co. will post 6.75 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of the company’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 owns 11,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $886,731.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of the business’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 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the president now owns 235,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,668,850.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.