Centene (NYSE:CNC) Price Target Raised to $78.00

Centene (NYSE:CNC) had its price objective upped by UBS Group from $70.00 to $78.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages have also commented on CNC. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $65.00 price target (up from $47.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Centene from $60.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $69.00 price objective on shares of Centene and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Morgan Stanley set a $71.00 target price on shares of Centene and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Centene from $71.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Centene currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.60.

Centene Stock Down 0.3%

CNC stock opened at $68.42 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $33.87 billion, a PE ratio of 23.43, a PEG ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.16. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $66.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.26. Centene has a one year low of $31.63 and a one year high of $72.50.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $50.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.12 billion. Centene had a return on equity of 12.15% and a net margin of 0.72%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.50 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Centene will post 5.22 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 56,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.90, for a total transaction of $3,779,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 248,854 shares in the company, valued at $16,648,332.60. This trade represents a 18.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Centene

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CNC. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Centene in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,660,422,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Centene by 423.0% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,301,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $853,805,000 after acquiring an additional 10,757,914 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Centene by 12.4% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,517,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $354,173,000 after acquiring an additional 608,249 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Centene by 21.6% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,518,785 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,818,000 after acquiring an additional 802,756 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Centene in the second quarter valued at $285,713,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Centene this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts continue to raise price targets. Wells Fargo lifted its target from $69 to $75 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating. JPMorgan also raised its target from $67 to $75, and UBS increased its target from $70 to $78. These revisions suggest analysts see additional value after Centene’s earnings update, even though the ratings remain cautious. Wells Fargo analyst update JPMorgan analyst update UBS analyst update
• Positive Sentiment: Strong quarterly results and higher guidance support the stock. Centene exceeded earnings and revenue expectations, and its quarterly revenue increased year over year. The company’s guidance increase reinforces expectations for improved profitability and prompted additional analyst optimism. Centene Q3 earnings and guidance Centene guidance increase
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst ratings remain restrained. Wells Fargo and UBS retain “equal weight” or “neutral” recommendations, indicating that the higher targets reflect moderate appreciation potential rather than a strong conviction that CNC is significantly undervalued. Centene analyst price target update
• Negative Sentiment: Membership pressure remains a key risk. Coverage has highlighted lingering membership challenges and uncertainty over whether Centene can maintain a stable health benefits ratio. These issues could offset the benefit of stronger earnings and guidance if they pressure margins or future revenue growth. Centene membership pressures Centene health benefits ratio analysis

Centene Company Profile

Centene Corporation is a diversified healthcare enterprise that provides government-sponsored and commercial health insurance programs and related healthcare services. The company’s offerings are primarily focused on Medicaid, Medicare, and health insurance marketplace plans, with an emphasis on serving individuals and families who may have limited access to traditional healthcare coverage.

Centene operates Medicaid health plans through state-based contracts and offers Medicare Advantage, Medicare prescription drug, and Medicare Supplement products through its Wellcare brand.