Factorial Partners LLC Lowers Stock Position in Centene Corporation $CNC

Factorial Partners LLC lessened its position in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 46,000 shares of the company’s stock after selling 23,000 shares during the quarter. Factorial Partners LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $1,641,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its holdings in Centene by 66.0% in the 3rd quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 85,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,041,000 after purchasing an additional 33,875 shares in the last quarter. Packer & Co Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Centene in the third quarter valued at about $50,487,000. ARGA Investment Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Centene in the third quarter worth about $21,485,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. boosted its position in Centene by 122.5% during the third 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in Centene by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 3,384,752 shares of the company’s stock valued at $183,724,000 after acquiring an additional 199,016 shares in the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CNC. Argus upgraded Centene to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “sell” rating and set a $38.00 price objective (up previously from $33.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $44.00 target price on Centene and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Centene from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Centene from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Centene presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $41.88.

Centene Stock Performance

NYSE CNC opened at $43.21 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $21.25 billion, a PE ratio of -3.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.48. Centene Corporation has a twelve month low of $25.08 and a twelve month high of $66.03. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $36.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The company reported ($1.19) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.22) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $49.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $48.41 billion. Centene had a negative net margin of 3.43% and a positive return on equity of 4.25%. Centene’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.80 earnings per share. Centene has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.000-3.000 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current 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.