Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) Stock Holdings Lessened by J.P. Marvel Investment Advisors LLC

J.P. Marvel Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 89.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,737 shares of the company’s stock after selling 39,998 shares during the quarter. J.P. Marvel Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $287,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Private Trust Co. NA increased its holdings in Centene by 75.3% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in Centene in the third quarter worth approximately $66,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Centene in the fourth quarter worth approximately $82,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Centene by 77.3% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,163 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,000 after buying an additional 507 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cromwell Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Centene by 588.0% in the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 1,266 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,000 after buying an additional 1,082 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on CNC shares. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on Centene from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Centene from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $75.00 price target (down previously from $80.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays increased their price target on Centene from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Centene from $66.00 to $71.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Centene presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $79.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director H James Dallas acquired 1,693 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $59.01 per share, with a total value of $99,903.93. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 1,693 shares in the company, valued at $99,903.93. The trade was a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Theodore R. Samuels II acquired 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $58.86 per share, with a total value of $294,300.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 23,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,353,780. This trade represents a 27.78 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 23,693 shares of company stock valued at $1,409,954 over the last ninety days. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Centene Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of CNC stock opened at $56.87 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $28.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.45. Centene Co. has a one year low of $55.03 and a one year high of $81.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $61.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $40.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.78 billion. Centene had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 2.03%. Centene’s quarterly revenue was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Centene Co. will post 6.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Centene 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.