Accel Wealth Management Buys New Shares in Centene Corporation $CNC

Accel Wealth Management bought a new stake in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 10,584 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $657,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Centene during the second quarter worth about $2,660,422,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Centene by 423.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,301,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $853,805,000 after purchasing an additional 10,757,914 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Centene by 12.4% during the 2nd 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 purchasing an additional 608,249 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Centene in the second quarter valued at approximately $285,713,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in Centene during the second quarter valued at approximately $257,279,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Stock Up 2.8%

NYSE:CNC traded up $1.87 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $68.89. The stock had a trading volume of 5,259,965 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,659,532. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Centene Corporation has a 1-year low of $31.63 and a 1-year high of $69.70. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $65.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.07. The company has a market cap of $34.03 billion, a PE ratio of -6.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 1.13.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $1.42. Centene had a positive return on equity of 12.12% and a negative net margin of 2.51%. The business had revenue of $53.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.16) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Centene Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Centene

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CNC shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Centene from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Argus upgraded shares of Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $79.00 price target (up from $68.00) on shares of Centene in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $80.00 price target (up from $75.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, UBS Group set a $79.00 price objective on Centene in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $70.05.

Centene Company Profile

Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) is a healthcare enterprise that provides health insurance and related services, primarily through government-sponsored programs. Its offerings include Medicaid plans, Medicare products, health plans sold through the Affordable Care Act marketplace, and services for military families through government-sponsored healthcare programs.

The company also provides pharmacy, behavioral health, specialty healthcare, care management and administrative services through various subsidiaries and partner organizations.