11,057 Shares in Centene Corporation $CNC Acquired by Essex Financial Services Inc.

Essex Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 11,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $455,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CNC. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Centene by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 56,978,753 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,344,676,000 after purchasing an additional 190,334 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Centene by 76.6% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 14,654,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $522,885,000 after buying an additional 6,356,152 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Centene by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,271,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $554,338,000 after buying an additional 697,277 shares during the last quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. grew its stake in shares of Centene by 184.0% during the third quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. now owns 9,046,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $322,761,000 after acquiring an additional 5,860,630 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in shares of Centene by 32.0% during the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 8,716,056 shares of the company’s stock worth $310,989,000 after acquiring an additional 2,111,674 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Centene Stock Performance

Centene stock opened at $59.90 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $29.58 billion, a PE ratio of -4.56, a P/E/G ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.09. Centene Corporation has a 12 month low of $25.08 and a 12 month high of $62.10. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $45.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CNC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Centene from $41.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Argus upgraded Centene to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Centene from $44.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Mizuho set a $58.00 price target on shares of Centene and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $61.00 price target (up from $55.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Friday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $58.94.

Centene Profile

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.