Hartford Investment Management Co. Sells 971 Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Hartford Investment Management Co. cut its stake in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 2.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 33,194 shares of the company’s stock after selling 971 shares during the period. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Centene were worth $2,499,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Park Place Capital Corp grew its stake in Centene by 1,190.0% during the third quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 387 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its holdings in Centene by 41.4% during the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 468 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Chris Bulman Inc bought a new position in Centene in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Riverview Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Centene by 154.6% during the second quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 527 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Centene in the second quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE CNC opened at $61.60 on Friday. Centene Co. has a twelve month low of $59.77 and a twelve month high of $81.42. The stock has a market cap of $32.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company’s fifty day moving average is $73.50 and its 200-day moving average is $72.45.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.02). Centene had a return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 1.79%. The business had revenue of $39.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.10 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Centene Co. will post 6.8 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CNC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Centene from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Centene from $80.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Centene from $93.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Centene from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Centene presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.58.

Centene Company Profile

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.