Centene (NYSE:CNC) Now Covered by Royal Bank Of Canada

Stock analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of Centene (NYSE:CNC) in a report issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm set a “sector perform” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s price objective points to a potential upside of 9.94% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also commented on CNC. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Centene from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Zacks Research upgraded Centene from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Centene from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on Centene from $58.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $60.78.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CNC opened at $63.67 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Centene has a 1-year low of $25.08 and a 1-year high of $66.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.44 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.85, a P/E/G ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.09. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $54.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.32.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $1.14. The company had revenue of $49.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $47.53 billion. Centene had a negative net margin of 3.25% and a positive return on equity of 5.57%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.90 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Centene will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CNC. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Centene by 3.1% in the first quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,683 shares of the company’s stock worth $219,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. Summitry LLC increased its stake in Centene by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Summitry LLC now owns 23,925 shares of the company’s stock valued at $783,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Centene by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 52,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,165,000 after buying an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Centene by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 7,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $307,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Affinity Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Centene by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Affinity Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $450,000 after acquiring an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.